FROM  PIONEER  HOME 
TO  WHITE  HOUSE 

LIFE  OF  LINCOLN 


W.  M.  THAYER 


LINCOLN  ROOM 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


MEMORIAL 

the  Class  of  1901 

founded  by 

HARLAN  HOYT  HORNER 

and 

HENRIETTA  CALHOUN  HORNER 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign 


http://archive.org/details/frompioneerhometoOOthay 


LOG     CABIN    TO     WHITE     HOUSE     SERIES 

From  PioneerHome 
to  the  White  House 

LIFE    OF 

ABRAHAM     LINCOLN 

BOYHOOD,  YOUTH,  MANHOOD, 
ASSASSINATION,     DEATH 

By  William  M.    Thayer 

Author  of  "From  Farm  House  to  White  House,"  "From 
Tannery  to  White   House,"  "From  Log  Cauin  to   While 
House,"     4k  From  Bo>hood  to  Manhood,''  etc.,  etc. 

With  Eulogy 
By  HON.  GEORGE  BANCROFT 

ILLUSTRATED 

CHICAGO 

ALBERT  WHITMAN  &  COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 

) 

Copyright  1882 
by  WILLIAM  M.  THAYER 

Copyright  1927 
by  ALBERT  WHITMAN  &  COMPANY 


CHICAGO 


Printed   in   the   U.    S.    A. 


vt,.   a  lSy\co<-^  fornix 


nai 


^L    WHO    HONOR    TRUE    MANHOOD 
%£fjis  Sfalume, 

?Ori.l'RAYING  THE  SIMPLICITY,  TACT,  TALENTS,  SELF-RELlArf'Jfc 
AND   STERLING   HONESTY   OF 

ABRAHAM     LINCOLN, 

IN  HIS  EARLY   CONFLICT  WITH   POVERTY   AND    HARDSHIP,, 

AND   HIS    REMARKABLE   PUBLIC 

LIFE, 

fe  j&mcmiu  an&  ^Kectinnatelj?  JMtcatei^ 


PREF  ACE. 


HPHE  author  of  this  volume  wrote  the  first  Life  of 
A  Abraham  Lincoln  — The  Pioneer  Boy,  and 
how  he  became  President  —  which,  after  a  very 
large  sale,  passed  out  of  print  in  consequence  of  the 
destruction  of  the  plates  by  fire.  A  Campaign  Life 
of  only  thirty-two  pages,  relating  chiefly  to  his  public 
career,  was  issued  at  the  West,  after  his  nomination  for 
the  Presidency  in  i860;  but  The  Pioneer  Boy  was 
the  first  complete  biography  of  the  man.  Dr.  Holland 
said  of  it,  several  years  later,  in  his  Life  of  Lincoln, 
"  A  singularly  faithful  statement  of  the  early  experience 
of  Abraham  Lincoln.' '  The  materials  for  the  Cam- 
paign Life  spoken  of  were  furnished  by  Mr.  Lincoln, 
and  he  very  kindly  directed  that  pamphlet,  with  a 
nuantity  of  unused  matter,  to  be  passed  into  our  hands, 
together  with  the  names  and  addresses  of  several  of 
his  early  associates,  reared  with  him  in  the  wilderness, 
and  of  intimate  friends  in  later  life,  from  whom  the 
most  valuable  information,  never  before  given  to  the 
public,  was  received.  From  these  sources  of  knowledge 
The  Pioneer  Boy  was  prepared. 

In  the  preparation  of  this  new,  larger  and  more  elab- 
orate Life  of  Lincoln,  we  have  had,  in  addition  to  the 
above  sources  of  information,  others  of  even  greater 
value,  at  least  so  far  as  his  character  and  public  services 
relate,. 


PREFACE. 


Subsequent  to  the  issue  of  the  former  volume,  the 
author,  having  in  view  the  preparation  of  a  more 
thorough  biography  at  a  future  day,  gathered  much 
valuable  information  from  public  men,  who  were  on  the 
most  intimate  terms  with  President  Lincoln  at  Wash* 
ington,  as  Sumner,  Wilson,  Buckingham,  and  Ames, 
who  are  dead,  and  others  who  are  still  living.  Also, 
periodical  literature  has  furnished  many  facts  and  anec- 
dotes, from  time  to  time,  which  have  been  carefully 
laid  aside.  Last,  though  by  no  means  least,  access  to 
the  numerous  lives  of  Lincoln  published  since  his  death 
« — Dr.  Holland's,  Lamon's,  Barrett's,  Leland's,  Forney's, 
and  Raymond's  —  has  been  especially  serviceable  in  the 
preparation  of  this  volume.  That  very  interesting 
work  of  Carpenter — Six  Months  in  the  White 
House  —  has  furnished  a  fund  of  incident,  illustrative 
of  Mr.  Lincoln's  character  and  ability. 

From  these  ample  sources  of  material,  the  author 
has  endeavored  to  make  a  biography  for  popular  read- 
ing such  as  the  times  demand.  The  very  large  sale  of 
his  recent  life  of  President  Garfield  — From  Log- 
Cabin  to  the  White  House  —  created  an  active  de- 
mand for  The  Pioneer  Boy,  which  fact  seemed  to 
mark  the  present  time  as  providential  for  the  issue  of 
this  new  life  of  the  martyr  President. 

The  perusal  of  this  work  will  satisfy  the  reader  that 
the  author's  claim,  in  the  Preface  to  the  Log-Cabin, 
that  Garfield  and  Lincoln  were  remarkably  alike  in  the 
circumstances  of  birth,  early  struggles,  and  later  ex 
perience,  was  fully  justified.  The  fact  is  without  a 
parallel  in  the  history  of  public  men  —  such  marvellous 
coincidences  from  their  birth  in  log-cabins  to  their 


PREFACE. 


assassination  in  the  White  House.  Apart  from  this 
likeness,  however,  the  life  of  Lincoln  as  an  example  of 
industry,  tact,  perseverance,  application,  energy,  econ* 
omy,  honesty,  purity,  devotion  to  principle,  and  triumph 
over  obstacles  in  a  successful  career,  presents  a  profit- 
able study  to  the  youth  and  young  men  of  this  and 
other  lands.  The  only  parallel  to  it  is  that  of  Pres» 
ident  Garfield,  with  which  we  aim  to  connect  this  later 
volume.  The  names  of  these  two  illustrious  statesmen 
are  for  ever  associated  in  the  history  of  our  Republic. 
It  is  well  nigh  impossible  to  separate  them  in  the 
thoughts  of  men.  Statesmen  of  such  power  and  in- 
fluence, beginning  their  lives  in  want  and  obscurity 
and  ending  them  in  the  White  House,  cut  off  at  last 
by  the  shot  of  the  assassin,  must  find  their  niche 
together  in  the  temple  of  fame.  One  other  name  only 
of  the  great  and  good  men  of  the  past  naturally  affiliates 
with  these  two  —  that  of  George  Washington  —  the  life 
of  whom  will  follow  this  as  soon  as  it  can  be  prepared, 
bearing  the  title,  From  Farm  House  to  the  White 
House.  These  three  —  Washington,  Lincoln,  and 
Garfield  — remarkably  alike  in  their  early  precocity 
and  the  wisdom  and  influence  of  manhood  —  furnish 
stimulating  examples  to  American  readers. 

Incidents  are  brought  to  the  front  in  this  life  of 
Lincoln,  as  they  were  in  that  of  Garfield,  and  they 
are  made  to  portray  the  life  of  the  man.  Facts  are 
better  than  logic  to  exhibit  the  elements  of  personal 
character ;  therefore,  we  let  incidents  tell  the  story  of 
his  life. 

When  Abraham  Lincoln  was  consulted  respecting 
his  biography,  after  his  nomination  for  the  Presidency 


8  PREFACE. 


in  i860,  he  replied:   "  You  can  find  the  whole  of  my 
early  life  in  a  single  line  of  Grav's  Elegy : 

" ;  The  short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor.' " 

While  this  apt  reply  revealed  the  simplicity  of  the 
man,  it  introduced  the  biographer  at  once  to  the  open- 
ing of  a  marvellous  life.  For,  surely,  that  is  a  marvel- 
lous life,  when  a  boy?  reared  in  a  floorless  log-cabin, 
works  his  way,  by  dint  of  perseverance,  upward  and 
onward,  into  the  highest  office  of  the  land. 

The  chief  object  of  the  book  is  to  show  how  its 
hero  won  his  position ;  yet  it  incidentally  exhibits  the 
manners  and  customs  of  the  times,  and  section  of 
country,  in  which  he  was  reared. 

Provincialisms  are  intentionally  avoided,  as  well  as 
that  singular  perversion  of  the  English  language  that 
characterized  the  unlettered  people  of  Kentucky  and 
Indiana  sixty  years  ago. 

When  Mr.  Lincoln  was  alive,  and  the  honored  Pres- 
ident of  the  United  States,  one  of  his  old  friends  and 
neighbors  wrote  to  us  :  "  I  have  known  him  long  and 
well,  and  I  can  say  in  truth,  I  think  (take  him  altogether) 
he  is  the  best  man  I  ever  saw.  Although  he  has  never 
made  a  public  profession  of  religion,  I  nevertheless 
believe  that  he  has  the  fear  of  God  before  his  eyes,  and 
that  he  goes  daily  to  a  throne  of  grace,  and  asks  wis- 
dom, light,  and  knowledge,  to  enable  him  faithfully  to 
discharge  his  duties. "  The  reader  will  find  abundant 
confirmation  of  the  friend's  eulogy  in  this  volume. 

W    M.  T. 

Franklin,  Mass.,  March,  1882 


CONTENTS. 


BIRTHPLACE. 


Cabin-home  on  Nolin  Creek  —  Father  and  Mother  —  Ances* 
tors  in  Virginia  —  Indians,  and  Grandfather  Killed  by  Them 

—  A  Dark  Day  —  Tales  of  Abraham's  Childhood  —  Battle 
with  Indians  —  Capture  of  Three  Girls  —  His  Father's 
Youth  —  Learning  Carpenter's  Trade  —  Could  not  Resd 
or  Write  —  Learning  of  his  Wife — Members  of  Baptist 
Church  —  His  Mother  —  On  Knob  Creek  —  Abraham 
Fishing  and  Hunting  —  Dennis  Hanks  —  Furniture  of  his 
House 23 

II. 

A   SCHOOLBOY. 

Riney's  "  mool  —  Reading  only  Taught  —  Hazel's  Schools- 
How  tc  get  the  Money —  Indiana  a  Free  State  —  Few  and 
Poor  Schools  —  Four  Miles  Away  —  The  Lincoln  Library 

—  Religious  Advantages  —  Elder  Elkins  —  Reading  the 
Bible  —  Familiar  with  Bible  through  Life — Incidents  of 
His  Parents'  desire  to  Educate  him  —  Decision  to  Move  to 
Indiana  —  Gallaher's  Interest  —  A  Conversation  —  Lard 
Titles  —  Real  Cause  of  Removal  to  Indiana,  a  Free  State    .     32 

III. 
THE    OLD    HOME    SOLD. 

Colby's  Arrival  —  His  Proposition  — It  Awakens  Surprise  — 
The  Farm  Sold  for  Whiskey  —  Not  Singular  then  —  Pr  p- 
arations  to  Move  —  Settlement  —  Starting  on   Fiatboai  ^ 


IO  CONTENTS. 


On  the  Ohio  —  Upset  in  the  River  —  Saved  —  Recovery  of 
part  of  Goods  —  Thompson's  Ferry  —  Moved  by  Posey  to 
Interior  —  Gave  Boat  for  Moving  —  Spot  Selected  —  Going 
back  for  Family  —  Heroism  of  Western  Females  then  — 
Indians  —  Seven  Days  on  the  Journey 42 

IV. 

A   NEW   HOME    MADE. 

The  Axe  a  Symbol  of  Pioneer  Life  —  Strength  Developed  - 
Incident  Forty  Years  Later  —  Erecting  a  Half-faced  Camp 

—  How  Abe  began  Pioneer  life  —  Built  Log-house  next  Year 

—  Described  —  Putting  up  a  Bed  —  Making  Table  and 
Stools  —  Abe's  Parlor  Chamber  —  The  Home-made  Grist- 
mill —  Process  of  making  it  —  How  Pioneer  Families  got 
Meal  —  Reading  in  his  new  Home  —  Improving  in  Pen- 
manship —  Surroundings  described  —  No  Water  near  — 
How  got  this  Farm  —  Spencer  County  —  State  of  Society 
twc  Years  later,  and  Physical  Condition  described  by 
Turnham —  Mrs.  Lincoln  against  Drinking  Customs      .     .     5(3 

V. 

♦  AFTER   GAME. 

His   First  Shot  —  Talking  over  Loss  on  Ohio  — Th.    ^lock 
of  Turkeys  —  A  large  one  killed  —  Abe  Lincoln  surprised 

—  Dependent  on  Hunting  for  Food  —  Skill  of  Pioneer 
Hunters  —  Their  Standard  —  Snuffing  a  Candle  —  Arrival 
of  Thomas  and  Betsey  Sparrow  —  A  happy  day  —  God- 
send to  Abraham .     70 


DARKER   i>AYS. 

Hungry  for  Knowledge  —  Wants  other  Books  than  Bible  — 
The  "  Milk-Disease  "  —  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sparrow  sick  —  Nurs- 
ing them  —  Their  Death  and  Burial  —  Mrs.  Lincoln's  brief 
Sickness  —  Neighbors'  Sympathy  and  Skill — Her  speedy 


CONTENTS.  I  I 


Death  —  Buried  on  the  Knoll  —  Abe's  Letter  to  Parson 
Elkins  — His  first  Letter  —  Neighbors  surprised  —  Writing 
Letters  for  them  —  Parson  Elkins  comes  —  His  Welcome  — 
His  Funeral  Sermon  —  Impression  upon  Abraham  —  Char- 
acter and  Power  of  Pioneer  Preachers  —  A  Remarkable  Ex- 
ample —  These  Preachers  and  Abraham's  early  life    .     .     .     74 


VII. 

BRIGHTER   HOURS. 

Copy  of  Pilgrim's  Progress  —  His   surprise  —  yEsop's   Fables 

—  A  Treasure  and  its  Influence  —  Books  Interfere  with 
Work  —  His  Father's  Reproof — Writing  Name  on  the 
Earth  —  Charged   with   Laziness  — The   Charge   Repelled 

—  Common  to  call  Students  lazy  —  None  Lazy  who  Im- 
prove every  Moment  —  At  Baldwin's  Shop  —  Seeking  enter- 
tainment—  Ramsay's  Life  of  Washington  read  — Robinson 
Crusoe  his  delight 93 

VIII. 

A  NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS. 

Mr.  Lincoln's  Home  Untidy  —  Need  of  a  Wife  and  Mother  — 
Remembers  a  Friend  of  his  early  Manhood  —  Married  — 
Brings  his  Bride  Home — Her  "Household  Stuff"  —  The 
second  Mrs.  Lincoln  better  Educated  than  the  first  —  Has 
Floor  made  and  Windows  supplied  —  Abraham's  Welcome 
to  his  Stepmother  and  her  Children  — What  Dennis  Hanks 
says  —  Dennis  Married  one  of  her  Daughters  —  Dorsey 
opens  School  —  School-house  described  —  Arithmetic  — 
"Trapping  up"  —  Crawford's  School  —  Crawford's  In- 
fluence —  His  Prophecy  about  Abe  —  Example  of  Abe's 
Honesty  —  What  Nat  Grigsby  says  —  Abe's  Compositions  — 
Opposes  Cruelty  to  Animals — Defends  a  Terrapin  —  His 
Plea  —  Crawford's  Praise — The  Rule  of  Three  —  Peace- 
maker—  An  Example  —  Best  Spelling  —  Spelling  D-e-f-i-e-d 
■ — Teaching  "  Manners  "  —  Abe's  Appearance  —  Swaney's 
School  — John  Hanks 103 


12  CONTENTS. 


IX. 

BORROWING  AND   WHAT  CAME   OF  IT. 

Talk  about  Washington — Weems'  Life  of  Washington  — 
Borrowing  the  Book  —  Consequences  of  Borrowing  Books 
—  Pleasant  Hours  —  A  Rain  ruins  the  Book — Sorrowing 
over  it  —  Proposition  to  Crawford,  the  Owner — His  Ex- 
tortion —  A  hard  Man  —  Cuts  three  Acres  of  Fodder  to 
Pay  for  Book  —  Afterwards  Worked  for  Crawford,  with 
his  Sister —  "  The  Kentucky  Preceptor  "  — Appearance  of 
Josiah  Crawford  —  His  Nose  in  Abe's  Verse  and  "  Chron- 
icles"—  What  Mrs.  Crawford  says  about  his  being  Pres- 
ident—  Abraham  Kicked  seriously  by  a  Horse  —  "  Cluck,"     12a 

X. 

WORKING  AND  WINNING. 

Society  about  him — Mrs.  Crawford's  Description  —  Popu- 
lation increased  —  People  superstitious  —  Examples  of 
superstition  —  Influence  on  Abraham  —  Becomes  a  Ferry- 
man, Farmer,  Hostler,  and  House-servant  —  Reads  His- 
tory of  the  United  States  at  Night  —  Employer's  Son  his 
Bedfellow  —  Abe's  late  Reading  vexes  him  —  What  he  Said 
about  Abe  Twenty  Years  after — Hog-killing  —  Became 
a  Butcher — His  Sister  Married — He  Writes  a  Poem  for 
the  Occasion  —  His  Presence  demanded  at  Parties  — 
Works  for  Jones  the  Store-keeper  —  Variety  of  Work  — 
Reads  Life  of  Franklin  —  Reads  a  Newspaper  here  —  Dis- 
cusses Politics  —  Life  of  Henry  Clay  —  Visits  afterwards 
to  Grocery  —  Acting  the  good  Samaritan,  himself  the 
Horse  —  Saved  a  Man 13? 

XI. 
UPWARD   AND   ONWARD. 

How  Abraham  was  regarded  —  What  John  Hanks  says  — 
Mr.  Lamon's  words  —  His  Mother's  Testimony — The 
Scrap-book  -•  His  Mother's  Tribute  to  Herndon  —  Read 


CONTENTS.  Ij 

y — • 

ing  and  "Preaching  about"  —  The  Eccentric  Preacher 
and  Abraham's  imitation — His  Father  stopping  it  — 
Foundation  of  Greatness  laid  here  —  Working  for  Mr. 
Wood — The  Temperance  Paper,  and  Writing  for  it  — 
The  Political  Paper,  and  Writing  for  it  —  Excitement 
over  the  Pioneer  Writer  —  Substance  of  his  Political 
Article — Just  what  he  Wrote  when  President  —  Abra- 
ham's Temperance  Principles  —  His  Original  Copies  in 
Verse  —  Hunting  a  Necessity  —  Wild  Animals  there  — 
Plays  and  Games  —  Abraham's  great  Strength     ....     145 

XII. 

ON  THE    FLATBOAT. 

Works  for  Mr.  Gentry  —  A  Flatboat  Trip  to  New  Orleans 
Proposed  —  Account  of  Flatboating  —  Consent  of  Parents 
to  go  —  His  Mother's  Apprehensions  —  Preparations  — 
Talk  with  Miss  Robyon  Astronomy  —  What  she  Thought 
Forty  Years  after  —  The  Trip  described  —  A  Rough  Life 

—  A  Bloody  Contest  with  Madame  Bushane's  Slaves  — 
The  Sequel  —  The  Trip  successful  —  Return  Home  .     .     .     158 

XIII. 
SUNDRY   INCIDENTS. 

Trading  Trip  —  His  first  Dollar  for  Service  —  Looking  higher 

—  Call  on  Mr.  Woods  —  Disappointed  Hope  —  Another 
Log-cabin  —  The  Statutes  of  Indiana  —  Studying  and 
Reading  at  David  Turnham's  —  Going  to  Court  —  The 
Murder  Trial  —  Meeting  the  Shelby  Boy  and  President  — 
The  Gentryville  Lyceum  —  Questions  Discussed  —  Place 
for  the  Enslaved  —  Abe's  Appearance  —  Centre  of  Attrac- 
tion —  The  Foolish  Act  and  the  Outcome  —  How  he 
Learned  —  Dennis  Hanks'  Eulogy  —  Talk  of  Removing 

to  Illinois .165 

XIV. 
OFF  TO   ILLINOIS. 

The  Families  to  Remove  —  How  they  Went  —  Abe  of  Age 

—  Will   not  Leave  his   Father  and   Mother  —  Scripps-' 


14  CONTENTS. 


His  Description  of  Moving  —  Two  Hundred  Miles  —  Bad 
Roads  and  Swollen  Streams  —  The  Kaskaskia  —  Uncle 
John's  House  —  The  Spot  to  Settle  —  Building  a  Log- 
house —  The  Fifteen  Acres  —  Ploughing,  Rail-splitting, 
and  Fencing  —  Mrs.  Brown's  Story,  and  Abe's  Bedfellow 

—  George  Chase's  Story  —  Splitting  Rails,  and  Reading 

—  Attacked  by  Fever  and  Ague  —  Useful — A  Hard 
Winter i8g 

XV. 

ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  NEW  ORLEANS. 
Denton  Offutt's  Proposition  —  Who  is  Abe  —  His  Step- 
brother—The Plan  and  Pay  —  Start  for  Springfield  — 
Boat  not  Ready  — Abe  Proposes  to  Build  one  —  Repair  to 
Spring  Creek  —  Merry  Times  —  Discussions  —  The  Jug- 
gler—  Description  of  Abe  again  —  Boat  Finished,  and 
Cargo  —  Stuck  on  Rutledge's  Dam  —  Abe's  Ingenuity  — 
The  Spectators  —  Success  and  Cheers  —  Offutt's  Opinion 

—  Abraham's  Invention  afterwards  —  The   Patent  Office 

—  Loading  Wild  Hogs  —  Sewing  up  their  Eyes  —  The 
Voyage  Down  the  River — Horrified  by  Slavery  —  Prov- 
idence leading  —  Return  —  Offutt  hires  Abe  to  keep  Store 

—  Walks  from  St.  Louis — The  Famous  Wrestler  —  Abe's 
Magnanimity 191 

XVI. 
IN   A   PIONEER    STORE. 
Going  to  New  Salem — Waiting — Acting  as  Polling  Clerk 

—  Going  on  Flatboat  to  Beardstown  —  Offutt  coming  with 
Goods  —  Installed  "  Storekeeper"  —  Care  of  Saw-mill  too 

—  W.  G.  Green,  Assistant  Clerk  —  His  Popularity  in  the 
Store  —  His  Honesty  —  Examples  of  it — Silencing  the 
Drunken  Bully  —  Minter  Graham  and  Pinkham's  Gram- 
mar—  How  Abraham  Found  and  Studied  it  —  Lamon's 
Words  —  Studied  in  Cooper's  Shop  —  Great  Progress  — 
Talk  with  Alley  —  His  Estimate  of  Grammar  —  Meeting 
Richard  Bates  —  Spilling  the  Milk  and  Breaking  Bowl  — 
A  Noble  Trait — Mastered  Grammar  —  Its  Blessing  to 
him  thereafter ......  0 204 


CONTENTS.  1 5 


XVII. 

STILL  A   CLERK. 

The  Clary's  Grove  Boys  —  Their  Aim  —  Description  of 
them  —  Ruffians  —  How  they  Attacked  Abraham  —  Dis- 
pute with  Offutt  — Jack  Wrestling  with  Abraham  —  How 
Abraham  Settled  the  Trouble  —  The  Clary  Grove  Boys 
Lose  Power — "Honest  Abe"  —  Jack's  Trouble  with  a 
Stranger  —  Abraham  reconciles  them  —  Abraham  Builds 
a  Pig-pen — Debating  Clubs  —  Dr.  Holland's  Account  — 
The  Talisman  Navigating  the  Sangamon  —  Abraham  a 
Pilot — Herndon's  Account  —  Oftutt's  Poor  Bargains  and 
Failure  —  Dr.  Holland  on  Abraham's  Standing   ....     22c 

XVIII. 

ON  THE   WAR   PATH. 

The  Black  Hawk  War  —  Abraham  Resolves  to  Enlist  — 
Others  follow  —  A  Company  formed  in  New  Salem  — 
How  chosen  Captain — Abraham's  Speech  —  "Captain 
Lincoln" —  He  Lifts  a  Barrel  of  Whiskey  —  His  Views  of 
Betting,  and  Whiskey  —  Lecture  to  Green — Going  into 
Camp,  and  End  of  War — Incidents  —  The  Friendly  In- 
dian and  General  Cass  —  Abraham's  Courage  and  Power 

—  His  Life  in  Danger  —  The  Greatest  Athlete  —  Wrestles 
with  Thompson  —  His  Uprightness  —  Securing  the  Rights 
of  his  Volunteer  Company  —  Irwin's  Tribute  to  him  as  a 
Soldier  —  Abraham's  Humorous  Speech  about  it  in  Con- 
gress   23C 

XIX. 

UNSOUGHT   HONORS. 

After  his  Return  from  War  —  Thinks  of  Learning  Black- 
smith's Trade  —  Candidate  for  the  Legislature  —  His  Talk 
with  Green  and  Surprise  —  How  he  Consented,  and  the 
Lyceum — Nominated,  and  first  Speech  —  Address  to 
Voters  of  the  Country  —  His  Comical  Dress  —  Not  Elected 

—  Advised   to    Study   Law  —  An    Honest   Calling  —  No 


1 6  CONTENTS. 


Confidence   in   himself —  Desires  Permanent  Occupation 

—  Becomes  a  Merchant  again  —  The  National  Debt  —  Hie 
Failure  —  What  Books  Read  —  Synopsis  of  all  he  Read  — 
Old  Copy  of  Blackstone  —  What  McIIenry  says  —  Assists 
Ellis  in  the  Store  — What  Ellis  says  of  him  —  What 
Papers  Read — How  Avoided  Interruptions  —  Meeting 
John  Calhoun  —  Becomes  Surveyor — His  Success  — 
Reforms  New  Salem  —  Makes  Jack  behave  —  Umpire  at 
Horse-race  —  How  Worked  for  Short  —  Appointed  Post- 
master —  Office  in  his  Hat 343 

XX. 

LAURELS  WON. 

Elected  Representative  in  1834  —  Dr.  Barrett's  View  —  Re- 
fused to  "  Treat  "  his  Friends  —  Close  Study —  How  Ob- 
tained a  New  Suit  of  Clothes  and  Interview  with  Smoot 

—  Pocket-money  —  Infidels  and  Infidel  Books  —  In  the 
Legislature — John  T.  Stuart  Advises  him  to  Study  Law 

—  His  Generous  Aid  —  Henry  Clay  —  Decides  to  Study 
Law — Self-denial  and  Companions  —  Walking  Twenty- 
two  Miles  for  Books  —  Like  Cicero  —  Elected  again  in 
1836 —  Surveying  and  Studying  —  Prevents  Violence  at  a 
Political  Meeting — Flaying  a  Politician  Alive — Who 
Met  in  Legislature  —  The  Long  Nine  —  Face  to  Face  with 
Slavery — Firm  Stand  with  Dan  Stone  —  Admitted  to 
Bar  in  1837  —  Elected  for  Third  Term  in  1838  —  His  Firm 
Temperance  Principles  —  Addressing  Young  Men's  Ly- 
ceum —  Elected  Fourth  Time  in  1840  —  Quelling  a 
Political  Mob  —  Silencing  a  Legislator  with  a  Story  — 
Stuart  and  Logan  —  Married  —  Letters  of  Friendship 
Revealing  his  Heart ,     «     .     261 

XXI. 

SUCCESSFUL   LAWYER. 

His  Practice  and  Poverty  —  Circuit  Court  —  House  Enlarged 
in  his  Absence  —  Horse,  Saddle-bags,  and  Buggy — His 
Character  —  Not  Defend  a  Client  in  Wrong  —  An  Inter- 
esting Case  —  The  Old  Negress  and  Her  Son  Redeemed 


CONTENTS,  I> 


—  Colonel  Bake**  and  Lincoln  —  What  Judge  Treat  re- 
lates — -  Deluded  into  a  Wrong  Case  —  Refused  to  Defend 
his  Client  when  Convinced  he  was  Guilty  —  Another 
Case  —  A  Suit  against  a  Railroad  —  Refused  $250  Offered 
him —  What  Gillespie  Thought  of  him  as  a  Lawyer  — 
What  Sparks  said  of  him  —  How  he  Saved  Jack  Arm- 
strong s  Son  from  the  Gallows  —  Aunt  Hannah  and  her 
Gratitude  -His  Eloquence  and  Power — How  he  As- 
sisted Aunt  Hannah  afterwards  —  Releasee"  her  Son  from 
the  Army  when  President  —  What  his  Associate  said  of 
his  Plea  —  Habits  of  Study  —  Sending  Money  to  Parents 

—  Spends  $750  for  his  Mother  —  Letter  to  his  Dying 
Father  —  Testimony  of  Judge  Davis  and  Judge  Drum- 
tnond 27Q 

XXII. 

THE  RISING  STATESMAN. 
C  *ndidate  for  Congress  —  Henry  Clay  —  Generosity  to  a 
Client — -Takes  Seat  in  Congress  Dec.  6,  1847 — -Opposes 
Mexican  War  and  Annexation  of  Texas  —  Popularity  in 
Congress  —  Devotes  Himself  to  Self-improvement  — 
Retirement  —  Occasional  Political  and  Temperance 
Speeches  —  Aroused  by  Breaking  Missouri   Compromise 

—  Takes  the  Field  of  Controversy  —  Replying  to  Douglas 

—  Great  Speech  —  Great  Success  —  Candidate  for  United 
States  Senator  —  Magnanimous  Withdrawal  in  Favor  of 
Turnbuli — Republican  Party  of  Illinois  Organized,  his 
Speech  —  Candidate  for  Vice-President  in  1856  —  In  Fre- 
mont Campaign  —  His  Prophecies  of  Bloodshed  —  Can- 
didate for  United  States  Senator  in  1858  —  His  Victorious 
Debates  with  Douglas  —  His  "  House-Divided-Against- 
Itself  Speech  "  —  Interview  with  Herndon  and  Others  -  - 
Result  of  the  Canvas  —  His  Tribute  to  Declaration  of 
Independence  ,.<....,-......  2$ 

XXIII. 

GOING  UP  HIGHER. 
State  Convention  of  Illinois  —  Lincoln  Invited  to  Platform  — 
The  Hurrah  —  The  Old  Democrat  and  Rails  —  Criticism  of 


18  CONTENTS. 


Democrat — Convention  puts  him   forward  for  President 

—  Incidents  a  Year  Before  —  An  Old  Friend  in  New  York 

—  At  Five-Points  Mission  —  Dr.  Gulliver's  Account  of 
Interview  with  him  —  National  Republican  Convention  at 
Chicago  —  The  Candidates  —  Lincoln  Nominated  on  Third 
Ballot  —  A  Hurricane  of  Applause  —  JNews  at  Springfield 
-^Scenes  —His  Temperance  Principles  come  to  the  Front 
again  —  Effect  at  the  South  —  His  Visitors  many  —  Amus- 
ing Incidents  —  His  Height  —  The  Scanty  Dinner — Han- 
nah Armstrong  — Incidents  in  Chicago  —  His  Election  to 
the  Presidency  —  Dramatic  Scene  in  Presence  of  Mr. 
Bateman  —  His  Confidence  in  Bible  and  Prayer— Child 
of  Providence  —  Went  to  see  his  Mother,  a  Touching 
Scene  —  Feop.e  Fear  his  Assassination  —  Speech  to  Neigh- 
bors on  Leaving  for  Washington  —  Trip  there  —  Plot  to 
Assassinate  him 311 

XXIV. 

LIFE   IN  THE   WHITE    HOUSE. 

IVhat  he  Did  —  Incidents  Tell  the  Story  —  Inauguration  — 
His  Address  —  Reading  Address  to  Family  —  His  Cabinet 

—  Words  with  a  Senator  —  Depended  on  Patriotism  of  the 
People  — The  Previous  Administration  —  Lincoln's  Story 

—  Interview  with  Senator  Douglas  —  Call  for  75,000 
Troops  —  Support  of  Douglas  —  First  Gun  of  the  Re- 
bellion —  Fall  of  Sumter  —  Effect  —  He  Ruled  and  no 
one  else  —  Rejects  Cameron's  Advice  — Refused  to  Re- 
taliate—Refused to  Remove  Cameron  —  Criticizes  a 
Committee's  Report  —  The  Smith  Case  —  His  Firmness 
—Thrusts  an  Officer  out  of  his  Room  —  Sickness  and 
Death  in  his  Family  —  Mrs.  Pomroy's  Interview  — 
Watching  with  Sick  Tad  —  Talk  with  Mrs.  Pomroy  upon 
Religion  —  Reciting  her  Experience  —  Twice  —  Thrice  — 
Prayer  and  the  War  — The  Midnight  Telegram  — Willie's 
Funeral— The  Senator  —  His  Mother's  Bible- -Institut- 
ing Prayer  for  Soldiers  —  Pleasing  Incident  —  His  Inter* 
view  witii  Dr.  Vinton— A  Devoted  Father — His  Deep 
Sorrow  —  Defence  of  his  Stories  —  Lis  Wit — His  Mag- 
nanimity —  Art  of  Putting  Things  —  Several  Illustrations 


CONTENTS.  19 

—  What  a  Writer  Says —  His  Religious  Character  —  Trus* 
in  Providence  —  Orders  to  Prevent  Sabbath-breaking  an  J. 
Profanity ■ —  Temperance  —  His  Literary  Ability  —  Illus 
trations — Address  at  Dedication  of  National  Cemetery         &jj 

XXV. 

HIS  GREAT  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS. 

Father  Abraham"  —  "  The  Boys" —His  Opinion  Ex 
pressed  —  Spoke  from  Experience  —  Would  not  Yieic 
Care  of  Soldiers  —  Daily  Routine  —  Night-work  —  Sol- 
diers before  Senators —  A  Soldier  and  his  Mother  —  The 
Baby  —  Boy  on  the  Ottawa  —  The  Drummer  Boy  —  A 
Mother  Asks  for  a  Son  —  The  Handsomest  Man  —  Rests 
in  Pardoning  the  "Boys" — The  Four  Telegrams  —  Do 
him  no  Good  to  Shoot  him  —  The  Vermont  "Boy"  — 
Blood  and  Remission  of  Sins  —  Rebel  Sympathizer  — 
Shaking  the  Hands  of  Five  Thousand  Soldiers  —  The 
Rebel  Soldier —  Extracts  from  Letters  —  Sorrow  ove^ 
Slain  Soldiers — Dr.  Holland's  Words  and  Facts  —  His 
Praise  of  General  Garfie*  '  —  His  Letter  to  a  Mother  —  In 
terest  in  Soidiers'  Aid  Societies  —  Letter  and  Speeches  — 
Joy  over  Relief  for  Soldiers  —  Pity  for  "Boys  "  in  Rebe^ 
Prisons  —  Retaliation  —  Visiting  Rebel  Prisoners  —  The 
Penitent  —  Herndon's  Eulogy  —  Climax  of  the  Sacrifice  .     %~fi 

XXVL 

HIS  WORK  FOR  THE   COLORED  RACE. 

>  Liberator  of  a  Race  "  —  His  Sentiments  Stated  —  Letter  to 
Greeley  — -  Sojourner  Truth  —  Frederick  Douglas  —  Chil- 
dren of  Concord  —  Counting  Greenbacks  for  a  Negro  — 
Colored  Delegation  from  Louisiana  —  Protection  of  Col- 
ored Soldiers,  his  Order  —  Refusing  to  give  up  Colored 
Soldiers  —  Refused  to  Pardon  Slave-Trader — Committed 
to  Negro  Suffrage  —  Reverence  of  Colored  Soldiers  for 
him  —  Negroes  in  Virginia  —  Their  Joy  over  Lincoln  in 
Richmond  —  Colonel  McKaye's  Account  of  them  —  Their 
Gift  of  a  Bible  —  Of  Wax  Flowers  —  Asking  for  Procla- 
mation   of    Emancipation  —  First  Proposed    Freedom  — 


20  CONTENTS. 

Cabinet  Meeting —  Proclamation  Issued  — -  His  Signature 
—  Carpenter's  Painting  —  Copy  of  Proclamation  —  Words 
if  Colfax  - 4«i 

XXVII. 

STILL   IN  THE   WHITE    HOUSE. 

R.e-riomination  —  The  Soldiers  for  him  —  The  German  — 
Call  for  500,000  Troops  —  His  Re-election  —  Reply  t© 
Committee  —  Its  Effect  —  Second  Inauguration  —  His 
Address  Remarkable  —  Copy  of  it  —  Sumner's  Words  — 
Civil  Service  Reform  —  Office-seekers  —  Going  to  City 
Point — His  Telegrams  —  Fall  of  Richmond  —  Lincoln 
enters  the  City  —  At  Jeff  Davis's  Headquarters  —  Reading 
Shakespeare  —  Surrender  of  Lee  —  National  Joy  ■ —  Sum- 
ner Classes  Lincoln  with  Washington 42a 

XXVIII. 

SHOT  OF  THE   ASSASSIN. 

Threats  of  Assassination  —  His  Remarks  —  Objected  to 
Guards  —  Colonel  Halpine's  Appeal  —  Plot  to  Abduct  him 
—  Robert  Lincoln's  Return  —  Ford's  Theatre  —  Ashmun 
and  Colfax  — The  Fatal  Shot  —  The  Assassin  —  Fearful 
Excitement  —  Seward  Wounded  —  Death-bed  Scene  — 
Terrible  Night — The  Assassin  —  Assassin  Caught  —  A 
Fact  about  Booth  —  Lincoln  and  William  of  Orange  — 
Description  of  the  Nation's  Sorrow  —  The  Sabbath  —  Ven* 
geance  in  New  York— Garfield's  Words  —  Grief  of  Col- 
ored People  —  Letter  from  Charleston,  S.  C.  —  A  Friend's 
Story  down  South  —  Foreign  Sympathy  —  Victoria  — 
Eugenie  —  France  —  Italy  —  Belgium,  etc.  —  Tributes  of 
Bancroft  and  Speaker  Colfax •     •    433 

XXIX. 

FUNERAL   CEREMONIES. 

Preparation  for  Funeral  —  Action  of  Congress  —  Lying  in 
State  — The  City  in  Black— Funeral  in  East  Room  —  Dr. 


CONTENTS.  21 


Gurley's  Eloquent  Tribute  —  Ceremonies  at  the  Capitol  — 
Vast  Multitude  —  Ceremonies  throughout  the  Land  — 
Floral  Tributes  —  Funeral  Train  to  Springfield  —  Scer.e 
In  Baltimore  —  Sorrow  in  every  Village  —  Philadelphia  in 
Tears  -  Prophetic  W  ords  —  Tribute  of  New  York  —  Mot- 
toes—  Other  Cities  —  The  Scene  at  Midnight  — Funeral 
at  Chicago  and  Springfield  —  Closing  Tributes    .     .     .     .     44$ 


XXX 

ORATION. 
By  Ho*i   George  Bancroft i$9 


CHAPTER    1. 

BIRTHPLACE. 

| HE  miserable  log  cabin  which  the  artist  fur 
nishes  further  on  in  this  chapter,  tells  the 
tale  of  poverty  and  lowliness  into  which 
Abraham  Lincoln  was  born.  It  was  a  floor- 
less,  doorless,  windowless  shanty,  situated  in  one  of 
the  most  barren  and  desolate  spots  of  Hardin  county, 
Kentucky.  His  father  made  it  his  home  simply  ^c- 
cause  he  was  too  poor  to  own  a  better  one.  Nor  was 
his  an  exceptional  case  of  penury  and  want.  For  the 
people  of  that  section  were  generally  poor  and  un- 
lettered, barely  able  to  scrape  enough  together  to  keep 
the  wolf  of  hunger  from  their  abodes. 

Here  Abraham  Lincoln  was  born  February  12th, 
1809.  His  father's  name  was  Thomas  Lincoln;  his 
mother's  maiden  name  was  Nancy  Hanks.  When 
they  were  married,  Thomas  was  twenty-eight  years  ot 
age,  and  Nancy,  his  wife,  twenty-three.  They  had 
been  married  three  years  when  Abraham  was  born 
Their  cabin  was  in  that  part  of  Hardin  County  which  is 
now  embraced  in  La  Rue  County,  a  few  miles  from 
Hodgensville  —  on  the  south  fork  of  Nolin  Creek.  A 
perennial  spring  of  water,  gushing  in  silvery  brightness 
from  beneath  a  rock  near  by,  relieved  the  barrenness  of 


24  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

the  location,  and  won  for  it  the  somewhat  ambitious 
name  —  '4  Rock  Spring  Farm." 

"  How  came  Thomas  Lincoln  here  ? "  the  reader  will 
ask,  "  Whence  did  he  come  ?  "  "  Who  were  his  an 
cestors  ? " 

Thomas  Lincoln  was  born  in  Rockingham  County, 
Virginia,  in  1778.  Two  years  later  (in  1780),  his 
father  lured  by  the  stories  of  the  remarkable  fertility 
of  the  soil  in  Kentucky,  and  the  rapid  growth  of  the 
population,  removed  thither  for  a  permanent  abode 
He  had  five  children  at  the  time— -three  sons  and  two 
daughters  —  and  Thomas  was  the  youngest  child  but 
one.     He  settled  in  Mercer,  now  Bullitt  Comity. 

Then,  a  hundred  years  ago,  the  Indians:  in  chat  re- 
gion, and  throughout  the  whole  north-west  territory, 
were  deadly  hostile  to  the  whites.  The  pioneer  "  took 
his  life  into  his  hands'"  by  removing  thither.  His  rifle 
was  his  constant  companion,  that  he  might  defend 
himself  against  the  savage  foe,  whether  at  home  or 
abroad.  If  he  went  to  the  field  to  plough  or  build 
fence,  or  into  the  wToods  to  chop,  his  rifle  was  indispen- 
sable. He  knew  not  when  or  where  the  wily  Indian 
would  surprise  him. 

Four  years  after  the  father  of  Thomas  Lincoln 
moved  into  Kentucky,  he  went  into  the  field  tc 
build  fence.  He  took  Thomas,  who  was  then  about 
six  years  old,  with  him,  and-  sent  his  two  older  sons, 
Mordecai  and  Josiah,  to  work  in  another  field  not  far 
away.  While  busily  engaged  in  putting  up  fence,  a 
party  of  Indians  in  ambush  fired  at  the  father  and  he 
fell  dead.  The  sons  were  terribly  frightened,  and  little 
Thomas  was  well-nigh  paralyzed.    Josiah  ran  to  a  stock- 


BIRTHPLACE.  2$ 

ade  two  miles  off,  and  Mordecai,  the  eldest,  ran  to  the 
cabin,  from  the  loft  of  which,  through  a  loop-hole,  he 
could  see  the  Indians.  A  savage  was  in  the  act  of 
lifting  his  little  brother  from  the  ground,  whereupon 
Mordecai,  aiming  his  gun  through  the  hole  in  the  loft, 
Sired,  and  killed  the  ''  redskin."  The  latter  fell  to  the 
ground  instantly  and  Thomas  ran  for  his  life  to  the 
cabin.  Mordecai  continued  at  his  post,  blazing  away 
at  the  head  of  every  Indian  who  peered  from  the  un- 
derbrush. Soon,  however,  Josiah  arrived  from  the 
stockade  with  a  party  of  settlers  ;  and  the  savages  fled, 
leaving  their  dead  comrade  and  a  woundtd  one  behind 
them.     Mordecai  had  done  good  execution  with  his  rifle 

That  was  the  darkest  day  that  the  family  of  Abra 
ham  Lincoln's  grandfather  ever  knew.  The  lifeless 
form  of  their  strong  protector,  borne  into  their  humble 
cabin,  made  it  desolate  indeed.  Who  would  defend 
them  now  ?  To  whom  would  they  look  for  bread  ? 
A  home  in  the  wilderness  was  hardship  enough,  but 
the  fatal  shot  of  the  savage  multiplied  hardships  an 
hundred  fold. 

Abraham  Lincoln  often  listened,  in  his  boyhood,  to 
this  tale  of  woe  in  his  grandfather's  cabin.  It  was  2 
chapter  of  family  history  too  startling  and  important 
to  be  passed  over  with  a  single  rehearsal.  It  was 
stereotyped  and  engraved  upon  Abraham's  young 
heart,  with  many  other  reminiscences  and  facts  con- 
nected with  life  in  Kentucky  at  that  early  day.  His 
father  was  a  great  story-teller,  and  was  noted  for  his 
"yarns,"  and  besides,  a  sort  of  pride  prompted  the 
recital  of  this  exciting  chapter  of  family  history,  with 
scenes  that  preceded  it. 


26         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  nuUSE. 

"  It  would  take  me  a  week,"  he  would  say,  €t  to  tell 
you  all  I  have  heard  your  grandpa  say  about  those 
dark  days.  The  very  year  he  came  here,  1780,  the 
Indians  attacked  the  settlers  in  great  force.  All  the 
riien  were  ordered  to  organize  into  companies,  and 
Daniel  Boone,  'the  great  hunter  of  Kentucky/  who 
settled  there  five  years  before  the  Lincolns  did,  was 
made  a  lieutenant-colonel,  and  all  the  forces  were 
put  under  the  charge  of  General  Clark.  They  started 
to  meet  the  enemy,  and  found  them  near  the  Lower 
Blue  Licks.  Here  they  fought  a  terrible  battle,  and 
the  Indians  beat,  and  cut  up  the  whites  badly.  Boone'o 
son  was  wounded,  and  his  father  tried  to  carry  him 
away  in  the  retreat.  He  plunged  into  the  river  with 
him  on  his  back,  but  the  boy  died  before  he  reached 
the  other  side.  By  the  time  Boone  got  over  the  river, 
he  looked  around  and  saw  that  the  Indians  were  swim- 
ming after  him  ;  so  he  had  to  throw  down  his  dead  son, 
and  run  for  his  life.  He  got  away  and  reached  Bry- 
ant's Station  in  safety.  Before  that,  the  Indians  cap- 
tured three  little  girls  and  carried  them  off.  They  be- 
longed to  the  fort  at  Boonesboro,  and  one  of  them  was 
Boone's  daughter.  They  were  playing  with  a  canoe  in 
the  Kentucky  river,  and  crossed  over  to  the  other  side, 
when  a  party  of  Indians  rushed  out  of  the  bushes  intc 
the  river  and  drew  the  canoe  ashore.  The  girls  were 
scared  almost  to  death,  and  screamed  so  loud  that 
hey  were  heard  at  the  fort.  The  men  in  the  fort 
ran  out  to  help  them,  but  by  the  time  they  reached  the 
canoe,  the  savages  had  fled  with  the  girls.  It 
was  almost  night  — too  late  to  organize  and  pursue 
{Hem*  and  so  they  spent  the  night  in  mustering  alj 


BIRTHPLACE.  27 

the  men  they  could  and  started  after  them  at  break  of 
day.  But  it  was  well  nigh  the  close  of  the  next  day 
when  the  settlers  came  in  sight  of  the  Indians,  forty 
miles  off.  They  had  camped  for  the  night,  and  were 
cooking  their  supper.  Fearing  that  the  Indians  would 
kill  the  girls  rather  than  give  them  up,  it  was  the  plan 
of  the  settlers  to  shoot  them  so  suddenly  that  they 
would  have  no  time  to  kill  the  girls.  So  they  banged 
away  at  the  savages,  all  of  them  together,  as  soon  as 
they  came  in  sight  of  them,  taking  good  care  not  to  hit 
the  children.  Not  one  shot  hit  an  Indian,  but  the  at 
tack  was  so  sudden  and  uproarious,  that  the  red-skins 
were  scared  half  out  of  their  wits  ;  and  they  ran  away 
as  fast  as  their  legs  could  carry  them,  leaving  the  girls 
and  their  weapons  behind.'' 

Abraham's  young  life  was  regaled  with  many  such 
"yarns" — real  facts  of  history  —  belonging  to  the 
times  and  experience  of  his  ancestors.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  effect  of  these  "  harrowing  tales  " 
upon  his  mind,  it  is  quite  certain  that  he  must  have 
seen,  by  contrast,  that  his  own  condition,  with  all  its 
want  and  woe,  was  a  decided  improvement  upon  that 
of  his  grandfather's  family. 

But  to  return  to  our  story,  Abraham's  grandmother 
removed  after  her  husband  was  shot  ;  and  Thomas, 
his  father,  was  compelled  to  shift  for  himself  as  soon  as 
he  was  old  enough  to  work  for  his  living.  Being  2 
rover  by  nature,  and  under  the  necessity  of  supporting 
himself,  he  wandered  about  from  place  to  place  in 
search  of  jobs,  and  took  up  his  abode  wherever  there 
was  a  chance  to  earn  his  bread  and  butter.  He  was 
not  very  enterprising,  nor  particularly  industrious  at 


28         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


this  period  of  ^iis  life.  He  loved  a  roving  life  too  well 
and  was  too  well  satisfied  with  jolly  companions  ta 
mean  business.  His  wandering  career,  however, 
showed  him  much  of  the  world,  and  furnished  the 
opportunity  to  store  his  mind  with  anecdotes  and  some 
useful  information,  which  he  made  frequent  use  of  in 
after  years,  and  by  reason  of  which,  he  became  very 
popular  with  his  associates. 

When  Thomas  Lincoln  was  about  twenty-six  years 
of  age,  he  went  to  live  with  Joseph  Hanks,  a  carpenter, 
of  Elizabethtown,  Kentucky,  to  learn  his  trade.  It 
was  here  that  he  met  Nancy  Hanks,  niece  of  Joseph 
Hanks,  whom  he  courted  and  afterwards  married, 
thereby  getting,  not  only  a  trade,  but  a  wife,  also. 
The  latter,  however,  was-  much  more  of  an  acquisition 
than  the  former;  for  he  was  never  competent  to  do 
any  but  the  roughest  work  at  his  trade.  When  he 
was  married  to  Nancy  he  set  up  housekeeping  in  a 
more  miserable  abode  at  Elizabethtown  than  the  log 
cabin  on  Nolin  Creek.  From  this  shanty,  into  which 
he  took  his  bride,  he  soon  removed  to  the  other  shanty 
on  the  aforesaid  Creek. 

This  is  how  and  why  Thomas  Lincoln,  father  of 
Abraham,  became  the  proprietor  of  the  rickety  habi- 
tation in  Hardin  county,  that  we  have  described  to  the 
reader.  Here  three  children  were  born  to  him ;  Sarah, 
the  eldest,  Abraham  next,  and  Thomas  the  third.  The 
latter  died  in  infancy. 

1  homas  Lincoln  could  neither  read  nor  write.  He 
had  not  been  to  school  a  single  day  in  his  life.  His 
wife  could  read  passably,  but  she  could  not  write  suffi- 
ciently to  undertake  a  letter.      She  could   sign  her 


BIRTHPLACE.  29 


name  to  a  document,  and  perhaps  do  a  little  more  in  the 
same  line ;  while  her  husband  could  only  make  his  mark. 

"You  can  learn,"  said  his  bride  to  him,  soon  after  the 
twain  became  one  flesh.     "Never  too  old  to  learn.' ' 

"That's  a  question,"  responded  her  husband,  who 
was  one  of  the  easy  bodies,  who  could  scarcely  think 
it  worth  while  for  a  man  to  go  to  school,  even  to  his 
wife,  at  twenty-eight  years  of  age. 

"It's  not  a  question  at  all,"  responded  Mrs.  L, 
"You  can  learn  to  write  your  name,  if  nothing  more, 
and  that  will  be  a  great  improvement  over  making 
your  mark.     I  can  teach  you  as  much  as  that." 

At  length  the  good-natured  husband  consented  to 
take  lessons  of  his  wife  in  penmanship;  and  he  ac 
tually  set  to  work  to  accomplish  his  purpose.  The 
most  that  he  accomplished,  however,  was  to  learn  to 
write  his  name  so  that  ingenious  people  could  read  it. 
He  lifted  himself  out  of  that  ignorant  and  unambi- 
tious class  who  are  content  to  make  their  X . 

At  this  time  Thomas  Lincoln  and  his  wife  were 
members  of  the  Baptist  Church,  showing  that  they 
cast  in  their  lot  with  the  best  people  of  the  county, 
and  aspired  to  a  Christian  life.  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  a 
more  devout  follower  of  Christ  than  her  husband,  and 
was  more  gifted  mentally.  Dr.  Holland  says:  "She 
was  a  slender,  pale,  sad,  and  sensitive  woman,  with 
much  in  her  nature  that  was  truly  heroic,  and  much 
that  shrank  from  the  rude  life  around  her."  Lamon 
says :  "  By  her  family  her  understanding  was  consid 
ered  something  wonderful."  There  is  no  doubt  that 
she  was  a  bright,  sensible,  brave  Christian  woman, 
whose  father  removed  from  Virginia   into   Kentucky 


30         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

about  the  time  that  the  father  cf  Thomas  Lincoln  did. 
Thomas  appears  to  have  been  satisfied  with  his  choice, 
and  her  influence  over  him  was  strong  and  elevating. 

When  Abraham  was  four  years  old,  his  father  re 
moved  to  a  more  fertile  and  picturesque  spot  on  Knob 
Creek,  six  miles  from  Hodgensville.  This  creek  emp- 
ties into  the  Rolling  Fork,  the  Rolling  Fork  into  Salt 
River,  and  Salt  River  into  the  Ohio,  twenty-four  miles 
from  Louisville.  How  so  poor  a  man  could  purchase 
so  much  of  a  farm  (two  hundred  and  thirty-eight  acres) 
for  one  hundred  and  eighteen  pounds,  seems  myste- 
rious, until  we  learn  the  fact  that,  at  the  end  of  the 
year,  he  sold  two  hundred  acres  for  one  hundred 
pounds,  reserving  but  thirty-eight  acres  for  himself. 
But  even  this  condition  of  his  affairs  shows  a  decided 
advance  in  contrast  with  the  pitiable  poverty  that  in- 
ducted him  into  wedded  life.  Then,  too,  the  fact  that 
he  aspired  after  a  more  fertile  and  attractive  location, 
and  actually  planted  from  six  to  eight  acres  the  first 
year  of  his  residence  on  Knob  Creek,  proves  that  the 
spirit  of  a  larger  enterprise  possessed  his  soul.  Some- 
how his  marriage  to  Nancy  Hanks  had  raised  him  above 
that  restless,  thriftless,  aimless  life  that  characterized 
his  youth  and  early  manhood. 

It  was  on  Knob  Creek  that  Abraham,  or  "Abe,"  as 
he  was  familiarly  called  by  his  parents  and  other  people, 
was  initiated  into  fishing  and  other  sports.  On  Nolin 
Creek  he  hunted  "ground-hogs"  with  a  precocious 
boy,  Johnnie  Duncan,  who  afterwards  became  quite 
widely  known  as  Rev.  John  Duncan.  On  Knob  Creek, 
he  played  in  the  water,  took  long  tramps,  and  enjoyed 
himself  generally  with  one  Billy  Gallaher.     For  a  boy 


BIRTHPLACE.  31 

of  his  age  (but  six  or  seven  at  that  time)  he  was  ad- 
venturous and  enterprising.  One  of  his  venturesome 
sports  was,  to  catch  hold  of  a  branch  of  a  sycamore 
tree  and  swing  over  the  water.  One  day,  when  indul- 
ging in  this  risky  sport,  with  his  no  less  venturesome 
Billy,  he  lost  his  hold  of  the  limb  and  plunged  into  the 
*vater.  If  Billy  had  not  been  a  cool,  smart,  efficient 
boy,  Thomas  Lincoln  would  have  lost  a  good  son  on 
that  day,  and  the  United  States  of  America  a  good 
President.  But  Billy  was  equal  to  the  occasion,  and, 
by  brave  efforts,  succeeded  in  delivering  "Abe"  from 
a  watery  grave. 

Another  boy,  Dennis  F.  Hanks,  his  cousin,  was  one 
of  his  boon  companions,  though  a  little  older  than  him* 
self.  Thomas  Sparrow,  who  reared  Nancy  Hanks  to 
womanhood  (Mrs.  Lincoln),  had  given  Dennis  a  home 
in  his  family,  and  Sparrow  was  now  a  neighbor  ot 
Thomas  Lincoln,  and  Dennis  and  "Abe"  playmates. 
Dennis  was  a  great  lover  of  hunting  and  fishing,  and 
"Abe"  accompanied  him  upon  many  a  long  tramp, 
though  he  was  not  old  enough  to  use  fire-arms ;  no:: 
did  he  ever  become  expert  in  either  hunting  or  fishing. 

The  Lincoln  cabin  on  Knob  Creek  was  very  little 
better  than  the  one  on  Nolin  Creek.  It  was  a  floorless 
log-house,  with  one  room  below  and  a  loft  above,  and 
the  usual  accompaniment  of  stools,  skillet,  and  Dutch 
oven.  Here  "Abe"  began  to  show  signs  ot  remark- 
able brightness,  as  evinced  by  his  tact,  intelligence  and 
aims.  It  was  noticeable  that  he  was  more  precocious 
than  other  children  of  his  age ;  and  his  parents  were 
not  slow  to  perceive  and  appreciate  the  fact.  The 
next  chapter  presents  him  in  a  new  role. 


CHAPTER    II. 

A    SCHOOLBOY. 

INEY  is  going  to  keep  school,"  remarked  Mr. 
Linco,  n  to  his  wife,  one  day,  "  and  he  wants 
to  know  if  Sarah  and  Abe  will  go." 
"  I  hope  so,  certainly,  though  he  can't  be 
much  of  a  teacher  any  way  "  replied  Mrs.  Lincoln. 
"A  poor  school  is  better  than  none." 

"There  can  be  no  doubt  about  that,"  continued  Mr. 
Lincoln.  "  It  won't  take  Riney  long  to  tell  the  chil- 
dren all  he  knows ;  but  that  is  better  than  nothing." 

"  He  can't  write  nor  cipher,"  added  his  wife,  "  and 
a  man  who  can't  do  that  can't  be  much  of  a  reader." 

"  Well,  reading  is  all  he  claims,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln. 
"  He  has  nothing  to  do  with  figures  or  writing.  He 
proposes  to  teach  boys  and  girls  what  he  knows,  and 
nothing  more." 

"That's  about  all  the  best  of  them  can  do, — teach 
what  they  know,"- — Mrs.  Lincoln  answered.  "To 
attempt  more  would  be  foolish  indeed." 

This  Hezekiah  Riney  was  a  new  comer,  and  he  hao 
settled  within  a  half  mile  of  Lincoln's  cabin.  He  was 
a  rough,  ignorant  man,  with  scarcely  one  qualification 
for  a  teacher,   even  in  that  wild  untutored  country 


A   SCHOOLBOY,  33 


But  he  wanted  to  eke  out  a  miserable  subsistence  by- 
adding  a  few  dollars  to  his  pitiable  income  ;  and  so  he 
proposed  school-keeping  as  about  the  only  thing  pos- 
sible in  that  barren  country.  Parents  accepted  the 
proposition  because  there  was  nothing  better  ;  and 
here  the  hero  of  this  volume  began  to  be  a  schoolboy, 
accompanying  his  sister  Sarah  daily  to  Riney's  cabin. 
"Abe"  made  some  progress  at  this  school — he 
began  to  read.  A  dilapidated  copy  of  Dillworth's 
spelling-book  was  the  only  volume  the  two  children  of 
Tom  Lincoln  had  between  them  at  this  Riney  insti 
tution,  and  they  appear  to  have  made  good  use  of  it. 
The  brightness  of  the  pupils  was  a  pleasant  offset  to 
the  stupidity  of  the  teacher. 

Riney's  school,  for  some  reason,  was  of  short  dura- 
tion ;  it  closed  in  five  or  six  weeks.  Perhaps  the 
fountain  ran  dry  in  that  time.  Possibly  some  of  the 
scholars  knew  more  than  their  master  at  the  end  of 
that  period,  which  is  not  claiming  very  much  for  the 
pupils.  At  any  rate,  "Abe"  and  his  sister  trans- 
ferred their  destiny  to  another  "pioneer  college,"  as. 
forty  years  afterwards,  Abraham  Lincoln  facetiously 
called  those  cabin-schools  of  the  woods. 

"  Mr.  Hazel  knows  a  heap  more  than  Riney,"  said 
Mr.  Lincoln,  "  and  we  must  try  to  have  the  children 
go  to  his  school,  though  it  is  a  long  way  off." 

"  Yes ;  it  is  time  that  '  Abe  knew  something  about 
writing/  and  Hazel  can  learn  him  that,"  Mrs.  L.  re- 
plied. "  The  children  won't  mind  the  distance.  If 
we  can  scrape  together  enough  to  pay  for  their  school- 
ing, they  ought  to  go." 

The  last  remark  touched  upon  a  subject  that  was 


34  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

often  uppermost  in  Tom  Lincoln's  mind,  —  how  to  get 
money  enough  to  pay  for  the  necessaries  of  life. 
Although  he  was  satisfied  with  corn-cake  and  milk 
for  daily  food,  yet  it  would  require  considerable  in- 
genuity and  economy  to  produce  the  extra  money  to 
pay  for  the  schooling  ;  so  he  replied, — 

"  I've  counted  the  cost,  and  I  guess  we  can  raise 
die  money  some  way.  Hazel  can  start  Abe  off  on 
writing,  and  that  will  be  worth  everything  to  him. 
Some  day  I  hope  to  live  in  a  country  where  I  can 
earn  something  at  my  trade." 

"  That  will  be  some  distance  from  here,  I'm  think- 
ing,"  replied  Mrs.  L.  "We  can't  expect  much  growth 
in  this  part  of  the  country  at  present.  If  Indiana 
comes  into  the  Union  a  free  State,  there  may  be  a 
better  chance  there."  The  question  of  admitting 
Indiana  into  the  Union  as  a  free  State  was  then 
agitating  the  country.  The  subject  was  before  the 
American  Congress,  and  the  slave  power  was  doing 
every  thing  possible  to  prevent  such  an  event.  The 
slaveholders  of  Kentucky  were  especially  exercised 
about  it,  because  another  free  State  so  near  would  be 
an  additional  invitation  to  their  slaves  to  find  an 
asylum  there.  The  subject  was  discussed,  pro  and 
con,  in  every  Kentucky  cabin  where  white  men  dwelt. 
The  Lincolns  were  in  favor  of  making  Indiana  a  free 
State.  They  knew  full  well  that  the  curse  of  slavery 
blighted  the  prosperity  of  every  slave  State. 

"  There's  a  better  chance  for  every  thing  in  a  free 
State,"  was  Mr.  Lincoln's  only  answer. 

The  reader  must  understand  that  schools  were  very 
scarce  in  Kentucky  in  Tom  Lincoln's  day ;  and  the 


A   SCHOOLBOY.  35 


few  in  existence  were  very  poor,  scarcely  deserving  the 
name  of  schools.  They  would  not  be  tolerated  now. 
Teachers  were  no  better  than  the  schools  ;  for  it  is 
always  true,  "like  teachers,  like  schools."  Hazel's 
school  was  better  than  Riney's ;  for  Hazel  could  give 
instruction  in  "reading  and  writing."  True,  his  ac- 
quisitions in  these  several  branches  were  small  indeed ; 
they  compared  well  with  his  surroundings.  But  he 
could  give  such  a  boy  as  Abraham  a  start  in  the  right 
direction. 

Hazel's  school  was  four  miles  distant ;  and  it  was 
kept  in  a  log  schoolhouse,  the  only  one  in  all  that 
region.  To  this  pioneer  institution  Sarah  and  Abra- 
ham travelled  daily,  carrying  their  dinner  of  corn-bread> 
without  varying  it  a  single  day  during  the  eight  or  ten 
weeks  of  their  attendance.  Here  Abraham  really 
began  his  career.  Here  he  acquired  the  art  of  pen- 
manship, very  imperfectly,  of  course ;  but  he  learned 
to  form  letters,  and  became  enthusiastic  over  the 
acquirement.  Here,  too,  he  made  rapid  progress  in 
reading.  Mr.  Hazel  discovered  the  elements  of  a 
noble  character  in  the  boy,  and  predicted  that  he 
would  not  always  live  in  the  woods  as  his  father  had. 
The  best  evidence  we  can  find  proves  that  Abraham 
learned  about  all  Hazel  was  able  to  teach  in  the  few 
weeks  he  was  his  pupil. 

All  the  books  the  Lincoln  cabin  could  boast,  at  that 
time,  were  the  Bible,  Catechism,  and  the  copy  of  Dill- 
worth's  Spelling-Book,  that  Sarah  and  Abraham  shared 
between  them.  This  was  a  very  small  library  even  for 
a  pioneer,  but  it  was  good  as  far  as  it  went.  Any 
library  that  begins  with  the  Bible  begins  well.     The 


36  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 


Catechism  and  Spelling-Book  were  suitable  compan- 
ions for  the  Book  of  books.  "  The  three  safeguards 
of  our  country  are  the  Bible,  Sabbath,  and  Public 
School , "  and  here  they  were  in  the  Lincoln  cabin,  — 
elements  of  family  and  national  growth.  Other  things 
of  like  value  followed  in  due  time. 

The  religious  advantages  of  that  day  and  region 
were  smaller,  if  possible,  than  the  educational.  There 
was  no  worship,  nor  place  of  worship,  within  many 
miles.  "  Parson  Elkins  "  embraced  that  part  of  Ken- 
tucky in  his  circuit,  so  that  occasionally  he  preached 
in  the  Lincoln  cabin,  where  he  was  a  favorite.  Indeed, 
he  was  a  favorite  in  all  that  region,  and  was  cordially 
welcomed  by  all  settlers  who  had  any  respect  for 
religion.  With  this  exception,  public  worship  was 
unknown  among  the  pioneers  of  that  time,  and  Chris- 
tian families  were  obliged  to  depend  upon  themselves 
chiefly  for  Bible  study  and  Sabbath  observance.  As 
Mrs.  Lincoln  could  read,  and  the  Bible  was  the  only 
reading-book  in  the  family,  Abraham  often  heard  it 
read  upon  the  Sabbath,  and  other  days.  Before  he 
learned  to  read,  he  became  familiar  with  many  of  the 
narratives  of  the  Bible.  He  delighted  in  Bible  stories 
in  his  childhood,  and  never  tired  of  listening  to  their 
rehearsal.  As  soon  as  he  could  read,  the  Bible  became 
his  reading  book,  in  the  absence  of  all  others.  Over 
and  over  again  its  narrative  portions  especially  were 
read,  until  his  mind  became  stored  with  Scriptural 
knowledge.  As  he  grew  older,  and  other  reading- 
books  occupied  his  attention,  he  neglected  the  Bible 
for  them.  Still,  his  familiarity  with  it  in  his  child- 
hood made  an  impression  for  life.     Though  he  was  not 


A   SCHOOLBOY.  37 


a  Christian  man  when  he  entered  upon  his  public 
career,  yet  he  evinced  a  remarkable  familiarity  with 
the  Scriptures.  His  conversation  and  public  addresses 
were  often  enlivened  by  quotations  and  figures  from 
the  Bible.  In  the  sequel  it  will  appear  that  this  one 
book  must  have  been  the  source  of  that  honesty,  noble 
ambition,  adherence  to  right,  and  dependence  upon 
Providence,  which  signalized  his  public  career. 

Three  incidents  of  his  life  in  the  White  House  show 
his  familiarity  with  the  Bible.  At  one  time  he  was 
very  much  annoyed  by  men  who  complained  of  promi- 
nent officials.  To  one  of  these  parties,  he  said,  one 
day,  "  Go  home,  my  friend,  and  read  attentively  the 
tenth  verse  of  the  thirteenth  chapter  of  Proverbs." 
That  verse  is,  "Accuse  not  a  servant  to  his  master, 
lest  he  curse  thee,  and  thou  be  found  guilty."  General 
Fremont,  whom  he  had  relieved  of  his  command,  con- 
sented to  run  against  him  for  the  Presidency,  after 
Lincoln's  renomination  for  the  office.  A  small  follow- 
ing of  disappointed  politicians  and  military  aspirants 
rallied  around  Fremont.  About  the  time  the  latter 
withdrew  his  name,  —  satisfied  that  his  candidacy  would 
make  more  enemies  than  friends,  —  Mr.  Lincoln  said  to 
a  public  man,  who  introduced  the  subject,  "  Look  here ; 
hear  this ; "  and  he  proceeded  to  read  the  following 
from  the  First  Book  of  Samuel,  "And  every  one  that 
was  in  distress,  and  every  one  that  was  in  debt,  and 
every  one  that  was  discontented,  gathered  themselves 
unto  him,  and  he  became  captain  over  them,  and  there 
were  with  him  about  four  hundred  men." 

At  one  time  Henry  Ward  Beecher  criticized  his  ad- 
ministration sharply  in  the  "Independent,"  of  which 


38  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

he  was  the  editor-in-chief.  Several  editorials  of  this 
character  were  published  in  that  journal,  and  some  one 
cut  them  out  and  forwarded  them  to  Mr.  Lincoln.  One 
day  he  took  them  out  of  the  envelope  and  read  them 
all  through,  when  he  flung  them  upon  the  floor,  ex- 
claiming, "  Is  thy  servant  a  dog  that  he  should  do  this 
thing  ? "  The  criticisms  were  based  on  falsehoods, 
and  were  therefore  unjust  and  cruel ;  hence  his  apt 
quotation  from  the  Bible. 

It  has  been  said  by  one  of  Abraham  Lincoln's  biog- 
raphers, that  his  father  had  no  interest  in  his  educa- 
tion. The  facts  already  cited  prove  such  a  conclusion 
to  be  incorrect.  A  father  and  mother  whose  poverty 
compelled  them  to  live  upon  "  hoe-cake/ '  must  have  had 
a  decided  interest  in  the  education  of  their  children,  to 
try  to  scrape  together  a  few  dollars  for  their  tuition  at 
school,  and  then  send  them  four  miles  on  foot  daily 
to  enjoy  the  coveted  boon!  If  that  be  indifference  to 
culture,  then  the  more  we  have  of  it  the  better.  That 
Thomas  Lincoln  and  his  pious  wife  cherished  a  strong 
desire  for  the  education  of  their  children,  there  can  be 
no  doubt ;  that  they  saw  in  their  son,  Abraham,  early 
evidence  of  remarkable  mental  powers  is  certain ; 
but  that  they  expected  he  would  ever  become  distin- 
guished as  a  public  man  is  not  true ;  for  there  was  no 
prospect  whatever  that  he  would  lift  the  incubus  of 
want  and  obscurity,  and  step  out  into  the  world  of 
renown.  Such  an  anticipation  could  not  possibly  have 
been  indulged  by  them. 

It  was  the  autumn  of  1816.  Indiana  had  been  ad* 
mitted  as  a  free  State  into  the  Union,  and  immigration 


A   SCHOOLBOY.  39 


thither  had  already  set  in  as  a  consequence.  The 
excitement  over  freedom  in  Indiana  had  reached  Ken 
tucky,  as  we  have  said  already,  and  Thomas  Lincoln 
and  wife  became  interested  parties.  They  discussed 
the  question  of  removing  thither,  and  finally  decided 
in  the  affirmative,  provided  their  farm  could  be  sold. 

"As  soon  as  the  fall  work  is  through,"  was  Mr. 
Lincoln's  decision. 

11  If  you  can  sell,"  added  Mrs.  L.,  with  a  significant 
emphasis  upon  the  if.  "  It's  a  hard  place  to  sell  any- 
thing here.  Perhaps  we  shall  have  to  stay  a  while 
longer." 

"  There'll  be  somebody  to  buy,"  added  Mr.  L.,  with 
a  confident  air. 

"  Heard  anything  from  the  man  Gallaher  told 
about  ? " 

"  Not  a  word  ;  but  there's  time  enough  yet." 

Neighbor  Gallaher  had  met  a  person  who  desired  to 
purchase  a  small  farm  like  Lincoln's,  and  he  had  told 
Aim  of  Lincoln's  desire  co  sell  in  October,  "  after  the 
fall  work  was  through."  The  man's  name  was  Colby; 
and  Mr.  Lincoln  really  expected  the  would-be  pur- 
chaser would  make  his  appearance.  His  wife  had 
little  faith  in  the  enterprise,  although  she  really  desired 
to  remove  to  Indiana.  The  difficulty  of  selling  a  farm 
at  such  a  time  and  in  such  a  place  appeared  far 
greater  to  her  than  to  her  husband. 

"We  must  go  soon  or  not  at  all  this  year,"  added 
Mrs.  L.  "  Winter  will  overtake  us  in  the  wilderness 
before  we  are  ready  for  it." 

"  It  will  not  take  long  to  pull  up  stakes  and  locate 
in  Indiana  when  we  once  get  started,"  responded  Mr. 
Lincoln. 


40  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Perhaps  not ;  but  it  will  be  time  enough  to  think 
of  that  after  we  sell,"  suggested  his  wife,  as  if  she  had 
little  faith  that  a  purchaser  of  their  farm  could  be 
found.     "We  must  learn  to  labor  and  wait." 

"We've  got  that  lesson  pretty  well  learned  now," 
responded  Mr.  Lincoln.  "About  all  I've  ever  done 
is  to  labor  and  wait ;  and  if  I  wait  much  longer  I  may 
lose  what  title  I  have  to  my  land  now,  as  others  have." 

"That  is  not  impossible,  as  everybody  about  here 
knows,"  added  Mrs.  Lincoln. 

"The  chances  are  that  the  title  to  this  place  may 
prove  worthless,  judging  from  the  experience  of 
others,"  continued  Mr.  Lincoln.  "A  man  don't 
know  whether  he  owns  an  acre  of  land  or  not  about 
here." 

Great  excitement  prevailed  in  Kentucky  relative  to 
land-titles.  Many  settlers,  after  toiling  for  years 
for  a  livelihood,  found  their  titles  to  their  farms  de- 
fective. The  heirs  of  Daniel  Boone  were  cheated  out 
of  every  acre  of  land  purchased  by  their  illustrious  an- 
cestor. So  many  had  experienced  trouble  and  heavy 
losses  in  this  way,  that  almost  every  landholder  feared 
his  title  might  prove  invalid.  Thomas  Lincoln  shared 
this  fear  in  common  with  others.  One  of  his  biogra- 
phers maintains  that  he  removed  to  Indiana  solely  on 
this  account ;  —  that  the  curse  of  slavery  in  Kentucky, 
or  the  advantages  of  freedom  in  the  new  State  of 
Indiana,  had  nothing  to  do  with  his  decision.  But 
we  beg  leave  to  dissent  from  this  conclusion.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  the  uncertainty  of  land-titles  in 
Kentucky  was  one  important  reason  for  his  removal, 
but  it  was  by  no  means  the  only  reason.      Another 


A   SCHOOLBOY.  41 


reason,  without  doubt,  was  his  love  of  change.  His 
roving  disposition  was  not  entirely  eradicated.  But, 
more  than  all,  the  excitement  over  the  making  of 
another  free  State,  with  the  rose-colored  views  promul- 
gated concerning  the  advantages  of  a  free  State  to  poor 
men  like  himself,  influenced  him  to  make  the  change0 
It  is  positive  that  he  would  not  have  removed  to  Indiana 
at  all  had  it  come  into  the  Union  as  a  Slave  State.  The 
general  enthusiasm  over  its  admission  in  the  interest 
of  freedom,  lured  him  thither  as  it  did  hundreds  of 
others.  The  very  rapid  immigration  to  that  State, 
commencing  immediately  after  its  admission,  is  con- 
clusive proof  of  this  statement.  The  reason  of  his 
locating  just  where  he  did  in  Indiana  was,  probably, 
because  a  former  acquaintance  —  Thomas  Carter  — 
had  removed  thither.  But  the  next  chapter  will 
disclose  the  details  of  this  affair. 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE   OLD   HOME    SOLD. 

||BOUT    the    middle    of    October    (1816)   a 
stranger   appeared   at    the   cabin.      It  was 
Colby. 
"  You  want  to  sell  your  place,  I  hear,"  he 
remarked,  after  introducing  himself. 

"I'm  thinking  of  it,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln.  "Galla- 
her  told  me  that  you  would  come  to  see  me  about  it. 
So  we've  been  expecting  you,  and  rather  making 
arrangements  to  sell  the  farm.  This  is  about  what  you 
would  like  ? " 

"  Yes,  from  Mr.  Gallaher's  description  of  it.  I  can't 
handle  much  of  a  place  ;  I'm  too  poor  for  that." 

"  In  the  same  boat  with  the  rest  of  us,  then,"  sug- 
gested Mr.  Lincoln.  "  Not  much  money  in  these  dig- 
gings.    How  much  money  can  you  put  into  a  place  ?" 

"Not  much,  just  now.  I  must  make  a  barter  trade 
tf  I  buy  now.  What's  the  damage  for  such  a  place  as 
this?" 

"Three  hundi^d  dollars,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln 
promptly.     "That  is  the  price  I've  settled  on." 

"  Cash  ? " 

"  Yes ;  that's  what  I've  been  expecting,  though  I 
might  take  something  else  for  part  of  the  pay." 


THE   OLD  HOME  SOLD.  43 

"Well,  I  haven't  much  money,"  continued  Mr. 
Colby;  "but  I  have  what  is  good  as  money  in  the 
market/ ' 

"What  is  it?" 

"  You  see  I  've  been  specilatin'  a  little  since  I  gave 
you  a  call  in  the  summer.  I  used  up  my  grain  for 
whiskey,  and  I  bought  some,  too,  thinkin'  that  I  should 
make  a  spec  out  of  it;  but  I  hain't  sold  but  a  trifle 
on  't  yet.  Now,  if  I  could  pay  you  mostly  in  whiskey, 
I  would  strike  the  bargain  at  once ;  and  may  be  that 
over  in  Indiana  you'll  find  a  ready  market  for  it.7' 

"I  hadn't  thought  of  taking  pay  in  such  an  article," 
answered  Mr.  Lincoln;  "and  I  don't  know  as  I  could 
ever  sell  it.  I'm  going  to  strike  right  into  the  wilder 
ness." 

"  That  may  be ;  but  you  '11  have  neighbors  within  a 
few  miles ;  and  over  there  they  hain't  got  the  knack  of 
manifacturin'  it,  I  s'pose,  and  this  would  make  it  easier 
to  sell  it." 

"It's  awkward  stuff  to  carry  on  such  a  trip,  though 
I  expect  to  move  on  a  flat-boat." 

"Just  the  easiest  thing  in  the  world  to  carry  this; 
you  can  carry  it  as  well  as  not  on  a  boat.  You  won't 
liave  half  a  load  of  other  stuff.  And  it  will  bring  you 
louble  there  what  it  will  here,  I'm  thinkin'." 

"That's  all  guess-work." 

"But  don't  it  stand  to  reason  that  whiskey  would 
bring  more  where  they  can't  make  it,  as  they  can  here  ? " 

"Yes,  I  admit  that  it  may  probably  bring  more 
there,  and  it  ought  to  bring  more  to  pay  for  the  trouble 
of  taking  it  there.  But  can't  you  turn  it  into  money 
some  way?" 


44  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 


"I  don't  see  how  I  can  ;  I've  done  the  best  I  could 
about  it.  The  fact  is,  the  folks  in  this  part  of  Ken- 
tucky have  laid  in  largely  for  whiskey.  I  can  sell  it 
in  time,  I  have  no  doubt,  at  a  stiff  price,  but  that  won't 
help  me  just  now." 

"  Of  course  not ;  but  this  is  unexpected,  though  I  m 
determined  to  sell  out  at  some  rate.  You  look  over 
the  place ;  it 's  all  in  a  stone's  throw,  and  I  will  talk 
with  my  wife,  and  see  what  we  can  do." 

So  Lincoln  left  Colby  to  examine  the  premises,  after 
having  shown  him  the  limits  of  the  place,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  consult  his  wife.  Mrs.  Lincoln  looked  sur- 
prised and  amused  over  the  proposition  to  turn  the 
farm  into  whiskey.  "A  queer  bargain,"  she  said. 
"  Something  I  never  dreamed  of." 

"  Nor  I ;  but  I  must  sell  the  place,  and  this  may  be 
my  last  chance  this  season." 

"That  is  very  true,  and  the  matter  must  be  looked 
at  carefully.  It  may  be  that  the  whiskey  can  be  sold 
in  Indiana  more  readily  than  we  expect.  I  scarcely 
know  what  to  say.     You  must  do  as  you  think  best." 

"Well,  I  think  it  is  best  to  sell  out  at  some  rate,  and 
if  I  thought  that  this  was  my  last  chance  to  sell  this 
fall,  I  should  take  the  wrhiskey,  and  run  the  risk." 

"As  to  that,  I  think  it  likely  that  you  won't  have 
another  chance  this  fall.  It  is  n't  often  that  you  can 
sell  a  place  in  this  part  of  the  country." 

"I'm  inclined  to  think,  then,"  continued  Mr.  Lin- 
coln, musing,  with  his  eyes  fastened  upon  the  earth- 
floor  of  their  cabin,  as  if  scarcely  knowing  what  to  do, 
"that  I  shall  take  the  whiskey  if  I  can't  do  any  bettef 
with  him." 


THE   OLD  HOME  SOLD.  45 


"Just  as  you  think  best,"  answered  his  wife.  "You 
can  judge  better  than  I  can  whether  it  will  do  or 
not." 

After  going  to  the  man,  and  satisfying  himself  that 
he  must  take  the  whiskey,  or  fail  to  sell,  Mr.  Lincoln 
introduced  the  subject  of  the  price  of  it,  about  which 
nothing  had  been  said. 

"How  much  a  gallon?"  he  inquired.  "You'll  of 
course  sell  it  at  a  discount,  seeing  I  take  such  a 
quantity." 

"Certainly;  I  shall  sell  it  to  you  for  five  cents  a 
gallon  less  than  the  wholesale  price  of  a  barrel;  and 
you  can't  ask  anything  better  than  that." 

"  That 's  fair,  I  think  ;  and  now  let  me  see,  how  much 
will  it  take?"  The  reader  must  remember  that  Mr. 
Lincoln  never  studied  arithmetic,  though  he  could 
solve  such  a  problem  as  this,  only  give  him  time.  He 
had  been  obliged  to  think  and  act  for  himself  from 
boyhood,  and,  of  course,  contact  with  men  and  things 
had  given  him  some  knowledge  of  figures,  or,  at  least, 
the  ability  to  perform  some  problems  mentally. 

Mr.  Lincoln  continued:  "Seventy  cents  a  gallon  — 
that  will  be — let  me  see  —  seventy  cents  a  gallon  — 
that  will  —  " 

'*  Why,  one  hundred  gallons  would  come  to  seventy 
dollars,"  interrupted  Colby,  "and  four  hundred  would 
come  to  two  hundred  and  eighty  dollars." 

"Yes,  I  see  it— four  hundred  gallons,  and  the  rest 
in  money," 

"That  is  it;  it  will  make  just  ten  barrels  of  forty 
gallons  each,  and  twenty  dollars  in  money." 

"  I  see  it.     I  will  agree  to  that.     Ten  barrels,  and 


46         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


the  balance  in  money.  And  when  shall  we  close  the 
bargain  ? " 

"Just  as  soon  as  you  propose  to  leave/' 

"That  will  be  about  the  first  of  November.  I  shall 
want  the  whiskey  and  money,  though,  a  week  before 
that,  so  as  to  be  all  ready  to  start.' ' 

u  A  week  before  that  it  is,  then.  I  agree  to  that> 
and  shall  be  here  promptly  at  the  time.  Perhaps 
I  shall  bring  the  whiskey  before  that,  if  it  comes 
right." 

"Just  as  well,  —  as  soon  as  you  please." 

So  the  bargain  was  struck,  and  Colby  left. 

Let  the  reader  stop  here  to  ponder  this  trade.  A 
homestead  sold  for  ten  barrels  of  whiskey  and  about 
twenty  dollars  in  money  !  Surely  Abraham's  father 
could  not  boast  much  of  this  world's  goods  !  And 
then  what  an  article  to  take  in  exchange  for  a  home- 
stead !  What  a  prospect  for  his  son  !  Many  a  home- 
stead is  now  bartered  away  for  whiskey,  or  some  other 
intoxicating  beverage,  and  haggard  want  is  all  that 
remains.  But  not  so  in  this  case.  Mr.  Lincoln  did 
not  countenance  immoderate  drinking.  He  used  whis- 
key to  some  extent,  in  common  with  everybody  else, 
but  he  frowned  upon  intemperance. 

Such  a  transaction  as  the  above  was  not  thought 
singular  at  that  day.  Good  people  sold  and  drank 
whiskey.  There  was  no  temperance  movement  in 
Kentucky  at  that  time.  Indeed,  it  was  not  until  about 
that  time  that  the  subject  of  temperance  attracted 
attention  in  New  England,  and  then  it  did  not  assume 
the  form  of  total  abstinence.  The  pledge  required 
persons  to  abstain  from  immoderate  drinking.     It  was 


THE   OLD  HOME  SOLD.  47 

not  till  fifteen  years  thereafter  that  the  pledge  of  total 
abstinence  was  adopted. 

At  the  present  day  the  sale  of  a  place  for  whiskey 
would  excite  surprise  and  amazement,  and  subject  the 
character  of  the  recipient  of  the  whiskey  to  suspicion, 
at  least.  People  would  make  remarks  about  it,  and 
strongly  suspect  that  the  man  loved  whiskey  more 
than  real  estate.  But  not  so  at  that  time,  when  the 
sale  and  use  of  it  was  regarded  as  right  and  proper  in 
every  part  of  the  country. 

It  was  necessary  to  hasten  preparations  for  removal, 
as  Colby  desired  to  take  possession  as  soon  as  he 
could.  Mr.  Lincoln  must  take  his  goods  to  Indiana  by 
flat-boat,  and  return  for  his  family,  which  would  require 
time  as  well  as  despatch.  He  had  no  flat-boat,  and, 
therefore,  was  under  the  necessity  of  building  one. 
This  would  require  several  days  of  hard  labor.  He 
was  competent  for  such  an  emergency  ;  for  he  had 
constructed  and  run  a  flat-boat,  on  one  or  two  trips,  to 
New  Orleans,  in  the  company  and  employment  of 
Isaac  Bush.  His  trade  and  experience  served  him  a 
good  purpose  now. 

Arrangements  were  completed  for  the  flat-boat  trip 
Colby  had  arrived  with  the  whiskey  and  made  a  set 
tlement  with  Lincoln  ;  and  the  singular  cargo  was 
loaded.  The  heavy  wares,  like  his  carpenter's  tools, 
pots,  kettles,  stools,  puncheon-table,  axes,  etc.,  were 
loaded  upon  the  boat  with  the  whiskey  ;  and  the  many 
other  things  necessary  to  be  done  before  "  pulling  up 
stakes,"  as  Lincoln  called  it,  were  attended  to 

Mrs.  Lincoln,  Sarah,  and  Abraham,  wTho  had  watched 


48  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

the  progress  of  the  boat-building  with  peculiar  inter- 
est, and  seen  the  boat  launched  and  loaded,  waited 
upon  the  bank  as  the  homely  craft  was  pushed  out 
into  deep  water  and  floated  down  the  river. 

We  cannot  stop  to  detail  much  that  occurred  on  the 
voyage.     One  incident,  however,  deserves  attention. 

He  had  floated  down  the  Rolling  Fork  into  the  Ohio 
River,  and  proceeded  quite  a  distance  on  his  voyage, 
experiencing  no  perils  of  wind  or  storm  ;  and  he  was 
congratulating  himself  upon  his  success,  when  he  met 
with  an  accident.  By  some  mishap,  the  boat  tilted, 
and  the  whiskey  rolled  from  its  position  to  the  side, 
causing  him  to  upset.  He  sprung  forward  to  the 
other  side  in  order  to  save  his  boat,  but  it  was  too 
late.  The  whiskey  was  Heavy,  and,  once  started  from 
its  position,  there  was  no  saving  it  or  the  boat;  In  a 
moment  he  was  tipped  into  the  water,  with  all  his 
':argo.  It  was  a  good  place  for  the  whiskey,  but  not 
so  pleasant  for  him.  However,  he  clung  to  the  boat, 
and  made  the  best  of  it. 

"  Hold  on  there !"  shouted  a  man  who  was  at  work 
with  three  others  on  the  bank  of  the  river.  "  Hold 
on,  and  we'll  come  to  your  help."  He  was  not  more 
than  three  rods  from  the  bank. 

"  Quick  as  you  can,"  replied  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"We'll  be  there  in  a  jiffy,"  bawled  one  of  themj, 
and  all  ran  for  a  beat  that  was  tied  about  twenty  rods 
below. 

One  of  the  number  leaped  into  it,  and,  plying  the 
oar  with  all  his  might,  he  soon  reached  the  craft  thai 
was  upset,  and  took  Mr.  Lincoln  on  board. 

"  Bad  business  for  you,"  said  the  man 


THE  OLD  HOME  SOLD.  49 

"Not  so  bad  as  it  might  be,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln. 
14  Rather  lucky,  I  think,  to  meet  with  such  an  accident 
where  help  is  close  by." 

"  But  you've  lost  your  cargo,  though  we  may  save 
oome  of  it  if  we  set  about  it." 

"  Won't  save  much  of  it,  I'm  thinking.  The  water 
is  ten  or  fifteen  feet  deep  there." 

"  Hardly  that." 

"  Pretty  near  it,  I'll  warrant." 

By  this  time  they  had  reached  the  bank  of  the  river, 
and  the  men  were  consulting  together  about  righting 
Lincoln's  boat  and  saving  his  cargo.  Such  accidents 
were  not  uncommon  on  the  Ohio,  and  those  who  lived 
along  the  bank  had  lent  a  helping  hand  to  many  un- 
fortunate adventurers.  This  was  the  case  with  the 
men  who  came  to  Lincoln's  rescue.  They  were  not 
long  in  laying  their  plans,  nor  dilatory  in  executing 
them. 

In  a  short  time  they  secured  his  boat,  and  sue- 
ceeded  in  putting  it  in  good  trim.  They  proceeded, 
also,  to  save  so  much  of  his  cargo  as  they  could. 
They  called  other  men  in  the  neighborhood,  and,  with 
such  apparatus  as  the  vicinity  afforded,  they  raked  the 
river,  and  recovered  a  part  of  his  carpenters'  tools, 
axes,  a  spider,  and  some  other  articles.  By  much  per- 
severance and  hard  labor  they  succeeded  in  saving 
three  barrels  of  the  whiskey.  All  these  articles  were 
reloaded  upon  Lincoln's  boat,  and,  with  many  thanks 
to  the  kind-hearted  men  for  their  assistance,  he  pro- 
ceeded on  his  way. 

Before  starting  again,  however,  he  consulted  the 
men  who  aided  him  with  reear^  tj  the  future  of  his 


50  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

way ;  and  he  decided,  in  view  of  the  information  de 
nvea  from  them,  to  land  at  Thompson's  Ferry,  and 
there  secure  a  team  to  convey  his  goods  into  the  in 
terior.  He  had  previously  settled  in  his  mind,  as  wt 
have  said,  what  part  of  Indiana  he  should  make  his 
home. 

Accordingly  he  took  his  boat  and  goods  to  Thomp- 
son's Ferry,  and  there  he  found  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Posey,  whom  he  hired  to  take  him  eighteen  miles,  into 
what  is  now  Spencer  County.  This  Posey  owned  a 
yoke  of  oxen,  and  was  quite  well  acquainted  with  that 
section  of  country. 

"  No  road  into  that  county,"  said  he.  "  We  shall 
have  to  pick  our  way,  and  use  the  ax  some  at  that." 

"I  am  sorry  for  that,"  answered  Lincoln.  ''Are 
there  no  settlers  in  that  region  ?" 

"  Yes  ;  here  and  there  one,  and  they'll  be  right  glad 
to  see  you.     We  can  put  it  through,  if  you  say  so." 

"  Put  it  through,  then,  I  say,"  replied  Lincoln. 

The  man  agreed  to  carry  his  goods  to  his  place 
of  destination,  and  take  his  boat  for  pay.  Lincoln 
would  have  no  further  use  for  his  boat,  so  that  it  was 
a  good  bargain  for  him,  and  equally  good  for  Posey, 
who  wanted  a  boat. 

Accordingly,  the  team  was  loaded  with  his  effects, 
and  they  were  soon  on  their  way.  But,  within  a  few 
miles,  they  were  obliged  to  use  the  ax  to  make  a 
road. 

"Just  as  I  expected,"  said  Posey.  "I  have  been 
through  the  mill." 

"  How  far  do  you  expect  we  shall  have  to  cut 
through  places  like  this  ? "  inquired  Lincoln. 


THE   OLD  HOME  SOLD. 


"  Far  enough,  I  have  no  doubt ;  this  is  a  real  wil 
derness." 

"Then,  we  must  go  at  it,  if  we'd  see  the  end  soon.,, 

"Yes;  and  hard  work,  too,  it  will  be."  And,  with 
3>ut  wasting  time  or  breath  on  words,  they  proceeded  to 
eut  a  road  before  them. 

"  I've  cut  through  miles  of  just  such  a  wilderness  as 
this,"  said  Posey ;  "  and  I  shouldn't  be  surprised  if  we 
had  to  cut  a  road  half  the  way." 

"  I  hope  not,"  answered  Lincoln.  "  If  I  thought 
so,  I  should  almost  wish  myself  back  in  Kentucky." 

"Should,  hey?" 

"  Yes ;  it  would  be  an  everlasting  job  to  cut  through 
to  where  I  am  going." 

"Well,  I  don't  suppose  it  will  be  as  tough  as  this 
much  of  the  way,  but  bad  enough,  no  doubt." 

So  with  the  resolution  of  veteran  pioneers  they 
toiled  on,  sometimes  being  able  to  pick  their  way  for  a 
long  distance  without  chopping,  and  then  coming  to  a 
stand-still  in  consequence  of  dense  forests.  Suffice  to 
say,  that  they  were  obliged  to  cut  a  road  so  much  of 
the  way  that  several  days  were  employed  in  going 
eighteen  miles.  It  was  a  difficult,  wearisome,  trying 
journey,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  often  said  that  he  never 
passed  through  a  harder  experience  than  he  did  in 
going  from  Thompson's  Ferry  to  Spencer  County, 
Indiana. 

Some  two  or  three  miles  south  of  their  place  of  des- 
tination they  passed  the  cabin  of  a  hospitable  settler, 
who  gave  them  a  hearty  welcome,  and  such  refresh- 
ments as  his  humble  abode  contained.  He  was  well 
acquainted  with  all  that  region,  too,  and  suggested  to 


52  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Mr.  Lincoln  the  spot  upon  which  he  decided  to  erect 
his  cabin,  and  also  volunteered  to  accompany  them 
thither. 

The  settlers  at  that  day  delighted  to  see  others 
coming  to  their  vicinity  to  dwell,  thus  increasing  theii 
neighbors,  and  removing  somewhat  the  loneliness  oi 
pioneer  life.  They  were  ever  ready  to  lend  a  helping- 
hand  to  new-comers,  a~d  to  share  with  them  the  scanty 
blessings  that  Providence  allowed  them. 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  glad  to  reach  the  end  of  his  jour- 
ney ;  and  he  found  the  spot  suggested  by  his  new 
friend  in  the  cabin,  whose  name  was  Wood,  a  very  in- 
viting one. 

"  Better  than  I  expected,"  said  Lincoln.  "  I  wouldn't 
ask  for  a  better  plac,  than  this." 

"  I've  had  my  ey?  on  it  some  time,"  replied  Wood 

"Chance  for  nore  settlers,  though,"  continued  Lin- 
coln.    "  One  c.bin  in  eighteen  miles  ain't  very  thick." 

" That's  so,"  added  Posey.  "There's  elbow-room 
for  a  few  more  families,  and  it  won't  be  long  before 
they'll  be  here." 

"  But  you've  neighbors  nearer  than  that,"  said  Wood. 
'  There's  one  family  not  more  than  two  miles  east  of 
iere." 

"Then  I  shall  have  two  neighbors,"  said  Lincoln. 

"And  there  are  two  other  families  within  six  or 
eight  miles, — one  of  them  is  north,  and  the  other 
west,"  continued  Wood.  "The  fact  is,  people  are 
flockin'  into  this  free  State  fast." 

We  must  not  dwell.  Posey  returned  with  his  team 
to  Thompson's  Ferry,  and  Mr.  Lincoln,  having  de- 
posited his  goods,  and  secured  Mr.  Wood's  promise  to 


THE   OLD  HOME   S0L2?.  53 


look  after  them,  directed  his  steps  on  foot  back  to  his 
family.  It  was  about  one  hundred  miles  from  his  old 
home  in  Kentucky  to  his  new  one  in  Indiana.  This 
was  the  distance,  in  a  direct  line.  It  was  twenty-five 
miles  further,  the  way  Mr.  Lincoln  came.  It  was  a 
part  of  his  plan  to  return  on  foot.  A  direct  line 
about  southeast,  would  bring  him  to  Hardin  County 
— -a  three  days'  journey. 

His  family  gave  him  a  cordial  welcome,  and  Abra 
ham  was  somewhat  taken  with  the  story  of  his  father's 
adventure,  particularly  the  part  relating  to  his  plunge 
into  the  Ohio  River. 

H  xsty  preparations  were  made  to  remove  the  family 
and  such  things  as  he  did  not  take  with  him  on  the 
boat.  He  took  no  bedding  or  apparel  with  him  on 
the  boat.  These  were  left  to  go  with  the  family,  on 
horseback.  Two  horses  were  provided,  and  on  these 
were  packed  the  aforesaid  articles,  —  Mrs.  Lincoln,  her 
daughter,  and  Abraham  sometimes  riding  and  some- 
times walking. 

They  were  seven  days  in  performing  the  journey, 
camping  out  nights,  with  no  other  shelter  than  the 
starry  skies  over  them,  and  no  other  bed  than  blankets 
spread  upon  the  ground. 

It  was  a  novel  experience  even  to  them,  nor  was 
it  without  its  perils.  Yet  they  had  no  fears.  In  that 
country,  at  that  day,  neither  men  nor  women  allowed 
themselves  to  cower  in  the  presence  of  dangers. 

Females  were  not  the  timid  class  that  they  are  now. 
They  were  distinguished  for  heroism  that  was  truly 
wonderful.  Inured  as  they  were  to  hardships  and 
perils,  they  learned  to  look  dangers   steadily  in   the 


54         PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

face,  and  to  consider  great  privations  as  incidental  td 
pioneer  life.  Experiences  that  would  now  destroy  the 
happiness  of  most  of  the  sex  then  served  to  develop 
the  courage  and  other  intrepid  virtues  that  qualified 
them  for  the  mission  God  designed  they  should  fulfil. 

Many  facts  are  found  in  history  illustrating  the 
heroism  of  Western  females  in  the  early  settlement 
of  that  part  of  our  country.  Soon  after  Abraham's 
grandfather  removed  to  Kentucky,  an  Indian  entered 
the  cabin  of  a  Mr.  Daviess,  armed  with  gun  and  toma- 
hawk, for  the  purpose  of  plundering  it,  and  capturing 
the  family.  Mrs.  Daviess  was  alone  with  her  children. 
With  remarkable  presence  of  mind  she  invited  the 
Indian  to  drink,  at  the  same  time  setting  a  bottle  of 
whiskey  on  the  table.  The  Indian  set  down  his  gun 
to  pour  out  a  dram,  and  at  once  Mrs.  Daviess  seized 
it,  and,  aiming  it  at  his  head,  threatened  to  blow 
his  brains  out  if  he  did  not  surrender.  The  Indian 
dropped  the  bottle,  sat  down  upon  a  stool,  and  promised 
to  do  no  harm  if  she  would  not  fire.  In  that  position 
she  kept  him  until  her  husband  arrived. 

In  another  instance,  about  the  same  time,  the  house 
of  a  Mr.  Merrill  was  attacked  in  the  night  by  several 
Indians,  and  Mr.  Merrill  was  seriously  wounded  as  he 
went  to  the  door.  The  savages  attempted  to  enter  the 
house,  when  Mrs.  Merrill  and  her  daughter  shut  the 
door  against  them,  and  held  it.  Then  the  Indians 
hewed  away  a  part  of  the  door,  so  that  one  of  them 
:ould  get  in  at  a  time.  But  Mrs.  Merrill,  though  her 
husband  lay  groaning  and  weltering  in  his  blood,  and 
her  children  were  screaming  with  fright,  seized  an  ax, 
when  the  first  one  had  got  partly  into  the  room,  and 


THE   OLD  HOME  SOLD.  55 

dealt  upon  him  a  mortal  blow.  Then  she  drew  his 
body  in  and  waited  for  the  approach  of  another.  The 
Indians,  supposing  that  their  comrade  had  forced  an 
entrance,  were  exultant,  and  proceeded  to  follow  him, 
Nor  did  they  discover  their  mistake  until  she  had  des 
patched  four  of  them  in  this  way.  Then  two  of  them 
attempted  to  descend  the  chimney,  whereupon  she 
ordered  her  children  to  empty  the  contents  of  a  bed 
upon  the  fire  ;  and  the  fire  and  smoke  soon  brought 
down  two  Indians,  half  suffocated,  into  the  room.  Mr. 
Merrill,  by  a  desperate  exertion,  rose  up,  and  speedily 
finished  these  two  with  °  Vllet  of  wood.  At  the  same 
time  his  wife  dealt  so  Lea/y  a  blow  upon  the  only  re- 
maining Indian  at  the  door,  that  be  was  glad  to  retire. 

Volumes  might  be  filled  with  stories  that  show  the 
heroism  of  Western  women  at  that  day.  We  have 
cited  these  two  examples  simply  to  exhibit  their  forti- 
tude. Mrs.  Lincoln  was  a  resolute,  fearless  woman, 
like  her  pioneer  sisters,  and  hence  was  cool  and  self- 
possessed  amidst  all  exposures  and  dangers. 

We  said  they  were  seven  days  on  the  journey.  Two 
miles  from  their  destination  they  came  to  the  cabin  of 
their  nearest  neighbor,  Mr.  Neale,  who  treated  them 
with  great  kindness,  and  promised  to  assist  them  on 
the  following  day  in  putting  up  a  dwelling.  It  was  a 
pleasant  proffer  of  assistance,  and  it  served  to  make 
them  happier  as  they  lay  down  in  their  blankets  on  the 
first  night  of  their  residence  in  Spencer  County,  Indiana. 

We  have  been  thus  particular,  in  this  part  of  the 
narrative,  because  this  experience  had  much  to  do  with 
the  development  of  that  courage,  energy,  decision, 
and  perseverance  for  which  Abraham  was  thereafter 
distinguished. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

A  NEW   HOME   MADE. 

|T  was  in  the  new  home  in  Indiana  that 
Abraham  began  to  be  a  genuine  pioneer 
boy.  The  ax  w^s  the  symbol  of  pioneer 
life;  and  here  1^  oegan  to  swing  one  in 
dead  earnest.  From  the  time  he  was  eight  years  old 
until  he  had  past  his  majority,  he  was  accustomed  to 
the  almost  daily  use  of  the  ax.  His  physical  strength 
developed  with  wonderful  rapidity,  so  that  he  became 
one  of  the  most  efficient  wood-choppers  in  that  region. 
After  he  became  President,  and  the  "War  of  the 
Rebellion "  was  on  his  hands,  he  visited  the  hospi- 
tals at  City  Point,  where  three  thousand  sick  and 
wounded  soldiers  were  sheltered.  He  insisted  upon 
shaking  hands  with  every  one  of  them  ;  and,  after  per- 
forming the  feat,  and  friends  were  expressing  their 
fears  that  his  arm  would  be  lamed  by  so  much  hand- 
shaking, he  remarked,  —  "The  hardships  of  my  early 
life  gave  me  strong  muscles.,,  And,  stepping  out  of 
the  open  door,  he  took  up  a  very  large,  heavy  ax 
which  lay  there  by  a  log  of  wood,  and  chopped  vigor- 
ously for  a  few  moments,  sending  the  chips  flying  in 
all  directions  ;  and,  then  pausing,  he  extended  his  right 
arm  to  its  full   length,  holding   the  ax  out    horizon* 


A   NEW  HOME  MADE.  $7 

tally,  without  its  even  quivering  as  he  held  it.  Strong 
men  who  looked  on  —  men  accustomed  to  manual  labor 
—  could  not  hold  the  same  ax  in  that  position  for  a 
moment.  When  the  President  left,  a  hospital  steward 
gathered  up  the  chips,  and  laid  them  aside  carefully, 
"  because  they  were  the  chips  that  Father  Abraham 
chopped." 

It  was  necessary  for  the  Lincoln  family  to  erect  a 
habitation  as  soon  as  possible,  and  "a  half-faced  camp" 
could  be  more  easily  and  quickly  built  than  a  cabin, 
because  it  could  be  constructed  of  " poles"  instead  of 
logs.  For  this  reason,  Mr.  Lincoln  decided  to  erect 
the  "camp"  for  a  temporary  abode,  and  the  next  year 
build  a  substantial  log-cabin.  He  could  cut  the  logs 
and  prepare  slabs  during  the  winter,  so  that  the  labor 
of  erecting  a  cabin  would  not  be  great  after  the  plant- 
ing of  the  next  spring  was  done. 

A  " half-faced  camp"  was  "a  cabin  enclosed  on  three 
sides  and  open  on  the  fourth,"  a  very  poor  habitation 
for  the  cold  winters  of  Indiana.  But  pioneers  accepted 
almost  any  device  for  a  shelter,  and  made  the  best  of 
cold,  hunger,  and  hardship. 

Abraham  began  pioneer  life  by  assisting  his  father 
in  erecting  the  "camp."  Cutting  "poles"  was  an 
easy  method  of  initiating  him  into  the  hard  work  of 
chopping  wood.  It  was  not,  however,  until  the  follow- 
ing summer  when  the  more  substantial  cabin  was 
erected,  that  Abraham  engaged  in  the  enterprise  with 
all  his  heart.  A  severe  winter  and  unusual  exposure 
caused  him  to  appreciate  a  better  habitation. 

After  "clearing  some  land,  and  planting  corn  and 
vegetables,"  in  the  spring  of    1817,  and  the  summer 


58  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

work  was  well  under  way,  Mr.  Lincoln  proceeded  to 
erect  his  log-cabin.  His  nearest  neighbor  rendered 
him  essential  aid,  and  Abraham  proved  himself  very 
efficient  for  a  boy  of  eight  years.  One  who  often 
found  shelter  under  the  hospitable  roof  of  this  cabin 
has  furnished  the  following  description  of  it :  — 

"  It  was  sixteen  by  eighteen  feet  in  size,  without  a 
floor,  the  unhewn  logs  put  together  at  the  corners  by 
the  usual  method  of  notching  them,  and  the  cracks 
between  them  stopped  with  clay.  It  had  a  shed-roof, 
covered  with  slabs  or  clapboards  split  from  logs.  It 
contained  but  one  room,  with  a  loft,  slabs  being  laid  on 
the  logs  overhead,  so  as  to  make  a  chamber,  to  which 
access  was  had  by  pins  driven  into  the  logs  in  one 
corner.  It  had  one  door  and  one  window.  The  latter, 
however,  was  so  ingeniously  constructed,  that  it  de- 
serves particular  attention.  Mr.  Lincoln  made  a  sash 
of  the  size  of  four  six-by-eight  squares  of  glass ;  and,  in 
place  of  glass,  which  could  not  be  obtained  in  that 
region,  he  took  the  skin  that  covers  the  fat  portion  of 
a  hog,  called  the  leaves,  and  drew  it  over  the  sash 
tight.  This  furnished  a  very  good  substitute  for  glass  ; 
and  the  contrivance  reflected  much  credit  upon  the  in- 
ventive genius  of  the  builder/' 

The  cabin  was  furnished  by  Mr.  Lincoln  and 
Abraham,  and  we  will  give  some  account  of  the 
way  of  doing  it. 

" Bring  me  the  auger,  Abe,"  said  his  father,  "and 
that  measure,  too;  we  must  have  a  bedstead  now." 

"I  can  bore  the  holes,"  answered  Abraham,  at  the 
same  time  bringing  the  auger  and  measure. 

"No,  you  can't.     It's  tough  work  to  bore  two-inch 


A   NEW  HOME  MADE.  59 

holes  into  such  logs  as  these.     But  you  can  go  and 
find  me  a  stick  for  a  post,  and  two  others  to  lay  on  it." 

"That  all?" 

"Yes,  that's  all.  I'll  just  make  it  in  that  corner, 
and  then  I  shall  have  but  two  holes  to  bore,  and  one 
post  to  set  up.     It's  not  more  than  an  hour's  work." 

By  making  the  bedstead  in  the  corner,  the  work  was 
but  small.  He  measured  off  eight  feet  on  one  side, 
and  bored  one  hole,  then  four  and  a  half  feet  on  the 
end,  and  bored  another  hole.  Then,  setting  up  the  post 
in  its  place,  two  sticks  from  each  auger  hole  would  meet 
on  the  post,  thus  making  the  framework  of  the  bed. 
This  was  soon  done. 

"  Now  for  the  bed-cord,  Abe,"  said  his  father,  jocosely. 
"We  must  have  something  to  lay  the  bed  on." 

"I  thought  you  laid  on  slabs,"  answered  Abraham, 
not  exactly  comprehending  the  drift  of  his  father's 
remark. 

"We  haven't  any  other  bed-cord,  so  pass  me  some  of 
those  yonder."  The  slabs  used  to  lay  over  the  bed- 
frame  were  like  those  on  the  roof. 

"How  many  shall  I  bring?"  and  he  began  to  pass 
the  slabs. 

"About  six,  I  think,  will  do  it." 

They  were  soon  brought,  and  the  bed  was  complete. 

"Now,  a  sackful  of  straw  on  that  will  make  a  fine 
bed."  Dry  leaves,  hay  and  husks  were  sometimes  used 
for  this  purpose.     Few  had  feathers  in  that  region. 

"You  must  keep  on  with  your  cabinet-making,"  said 
Mrs.  Lincoln.     "We  need  a  table  as  much  as  a  bed." 

"Of  course.  That  comes  next,"  replied  her  husband 
"  The  legs  for  it  are  all  ready." 


60  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"  Where  are  they  ?  "  inquired  Abraham. 

"  Out  there,"  pointing  to  a  small  pile  of  limbs,  sticks, 
and  slabs.  Abraham  went  after  them,  while  his  father 
sawed  off  a  puncheon  of  the  required  length  for  the 
table.  A  puncheon  was  made  by  splitting  a  log  eigh- 
teen inches,  more  or  less,  in  diameter,  the  flat  side  laid 
uppermost.  Puncheons  were  used  in  this  way  to  make 
tables,  stools,  and  floors. 

By  the  time  Abraham  had  brought  the  sticks  for  the 
legs  of  the  table,  his  father  had  the  table  part  all  ready, 
and  was  proceeding  to  bore  the  holes  for  the  legs. 

"  Now  you  may  bring  some  more  of  those  sticks  in 
the  pile,  —  the  shortest  of  them  I  shall  want  next." 

-What  for?" 

"  Oh,  we  must  have  some  chairs  now ;  we've  sat  on 
the  ground  long  enough.     I  want  the  sticks  for  legs." 

"  Enough  for  one  stool  each  now  will  do.  We'll  make 
some  extra  ones  when  we  get  over  our  hurry.  Four 
times  three  are  twelve  ;  I  shall  want  twelve." 

"  Must  they  be  just  alike  ?  " 

"  No  ;  you  can't  find  two  alike,  hardly.  If  they  are 
too  long,  I  can  saw  them  the  right  length." 

All  this  time  the  work  of  making  the  table  went  on. 
As  Abraham  had  so  large  a  number  of  stool-legs  to 
select  and  bring  from  the  pile,  the  table  was  nearly 
completed  when  his  part  of  the  work  was  done. 

"  A  scrumptious  table,  I'm  thinking,"  said  Mr.  Lin 
coin,  as  he  surveyed  it  when  it  was  fairly  on  its  legs. 
"  Pioneer  cabinet-work  ain't  handsome,  but  it's  dura- 
ble." 

"And  useful,  too,"  said  his  wife.  "Two  of  them 
wouldn't  come  amiss." 


A   NEW  HOME  MADE.  6l 

"  No ;  and  when  I  get  time  we'll  have  another. 
Perhaps  Abe  can  make  you  one  some  time.  Can't 
you  make  a  table,  Abe  ?  " 

"I  can  try  it." 

"  Well,  you  ought  to  succeed,  now  you  have  seen  me 
do  it.  You  can  try  your  hand  at  it  some  day.  But 
now  for  the  stools." 

A  good  slab  was  selected,  of  which  four  stools  could 
be  made  ;  and  before  night  the  house  was  furnished  at 
small  expense.  A  bed,  table,  and  stools  constituted 
the  furniture  of  this  pioneer  home,  in  which  Abraham 
spent  twelve  years  of  his  eventful  life. 

Abraham  occupied  the  loft  above,  ascending  to  his 
lodgings  by  the  ladder.  It  was  his  parlor-chamber, 
where  he  slept  soundly  at  night  on  the  loose  floor, 
with  no  other  bedding  than  blankets.  Here,  year 
after  year,  he  reposed  nightly  with  as  much  content 
and  bliss  as  we  usually  find  in  the  mansions  of  the 
rich.  He  had  never  known  better  fare  than  this  ;  and 
perhaps,  at  that  age,  he  did  not  expect  a  larger  share 
of  worldly  goods. 

By  this  time  the  loss  of  the  family  by  the  accident 
on  the  Ohio  River  was  nearly  made  good,  except  one 
or  two  iron  kettles,  and  a  little  very  poor  crockery. 
The  puncheon  table  and  stools  were  replaced  by  bettei 
ones.  Through  the  winter  and  spring,  the  family  had 
got  along  as  they  could,  anticipating  an  improved  con- 
dition in  the  autumn. 

The  pioneer  families  of  that  day  needed  the  means 
of  converting  their  corn  into  meal.  Meal  was  a  staple 
article  of  food,  without  which  they  could  scarcely  sur- 
vive, but  there  were  few  grist  mills  in  all  the  region 


62       pioneer  home  to  white  house. 

for  many  miles  around.  The  nearest  was  Thompson's 
Ferry,  where  Lincoln  landed  on  his  way  to  Indiana. 
They  were  hand-mills,  and  could  grind  but  little  faster 
than  corn  could  be  pounded  into  meal  with  mortar 
and  pestle. 

"  I'll  have  a  mill  of  my  own,"  remarked  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  How  ?  "  inquired  Abraham. 

"  You'll  see  when  it  is  done.  This  going  eighteen 
miles  to  mill  don't  pay :  we  must  have  one  right  here." 

"  And  it  won't  take  you  longer  to  make  one  than  it 
would  to  go  to  the  ferry  once  and  back,"  said  Mrs. 
Lincoln. 

"It's  an  all-day  job  to  go  there,  and  a  pretty  long 
day  at  that."  She  kn~w  what  kind  of  a  mill  he  re- 
ferred to,  for  she  had  seen  them. 

"  We'll  have  one  before  to-morrow  night,"  added 
Mr.  Lincoln,  with  a  shrug  of  the  shoulder. 

"How  will  you  make  it?"  inquired  Abraham,  who 
was  growing  interested. 

"  You'll  see  when  it's  done :  I  shall  need  some  of 
your  help,  and  if  you  do  first  rate,  you  may  try  the  rifle 
some  day."  The  boy  had  been  promised  before  that 
he  should  learn  to  shoot. 

"  I  like  that,"  said  the  lad. 

"And  so  shall  I,  if  you  make  a  marksman.  You 
can  be  a  great  help  to  us  by  killing  game  to  cook. 
When  you  get  so  that  you  can  pop  over  a  turkey  or  a 
deer,  I  sha'n't  need  to  hunt  any." 

"Will  you  let  me  do  it?" 

"  Yes,  and  be  glad  to  have  you.  The  woods  are  full 
of  game,  and  you  shall  have  a  chance  to  make  a  good 
shot * 


A  NEW  HOME   MADE.  0% 


Abraham  was  delighted  with  the  prospect  of  mak 
ing  a  gunner,  and  he  went  to  his  hard  bed  that  night 
with  glowing  thoughts  of  the  future.  The  morrow's 
sun  found  him  up  and  ready  to  assist  his  father  in 
making  a  grist-mill. 

"The  first  thing  is  a  log,"  said  his  father;  and  he 
proceeded  to  look  for  a  tree  of  suitable  dimensions : 
nor  was  he  long  in  finding  one. 

"  When  I  get  it  ready,  I  shall  want  you  to  make  a 
fire  on't,  Abe/'  he  continued. 

"  What !  burn  it  up  ? "  screamed  the  boy,  not  under- 
standing what  his  father  meant. 

"  Ha!  not  quite  so  bad  as  that.  It  wouldn't  be  worth 
much  for  a  mill  if  'twas  burnt  up." 

"  Didn't  you  say  make  a  fire  on  it !" 

"  Yes,  on  the  top  of  it ;  we  must  burn  a  hole  in  it  a 
foot  deep,  to  put  corn  in  ;  so  get  your  fire  ready." 

It  was  not  long  before  the  tree  was  prostrate,  and 
a  portion  of  the  trunk  cut  off  about  four  feet  long. 
Setting  it  upon  one  end,  Mr.  Lincoln  continued, 
"  Here,  Abe,  that's  what  I  mean  by  making  a  fire 
on't.  You  must  make  a  fire  right  on  the  top  of  it, 
and  burn  a  hole  in  it  well  nigh  a  foot  deep.  I'll  heTp 
you." 

The  fire  was  soon  kindled,  and  Abraham's  curiosity 
was  at  the  highest  pitch.  What  was  coming  next  was 
more  than  he  could  tell, —  and  no  wonder. 

"  Now,  bring  some  water ;  we  must  keep  it  wet." 

"  And  put  out  the  fire  ? "  said  Abraham,  inquiringly. 

"  No,  no ;  we  must  keep  the  outside  of  it  wet,  so 
aiat  the  whole  of  it  won't  burn.  We  don't  want  to 
rwn  the  outside  —  only  a  hole  in  the  centre." 


64         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Abraham  saw  through  it  now,  and  he  hastened  ta 
get  the  water.  The  fire  was  kept  burning  while  Mr. 
Lincoln  looked  up  a  spring-pole,  to  one  end  of  which 
he  attached  a  pestle. 

"  What  is  that  for  ? "  asked  Abraham. 

"  You'll  see  when  I  get  it  into  working  order,"  re 
plied  his  father.  "  Keep  the  fire  a-going  till  it's  burnt 
deep  enough." 

"  It'll  never  burn  as  deep  as  you  say." 

"Yes,  it  will,  only  keep  doing.  That's  the  way 
pioneers  have  to  make  grist  mills." 

"  It'll  take  more  than  one  day  to  burn  it  anyhow,  at 
this  rate." 

"  No,  it  won't.  It  will  burn  faster  when  it  gets  a 
little  deeper.  We'll  have  it  done  before  night.  You 
must  have  patience  and  keep  at  it.'" 

And  they  continued  at  the  work.  Mr.  Lincoln  pre- 
pared the  spring-pole  somewhat  like  an  old-fashioned 
well-sweep ;  and  it  was  ready  for  use  before  the  hole 
was  burned  deep  enough  in  the  log.  Then,  with  his 
additional  help,  the  log  was  ready  before  night,  and 
the  coal  was  thoroughly  cleaned  out  of  the  hole,  and 
the  pestle  on  the  pole  adapted  thereto. 

This  was  all  the  mill  that  he  proposed  to  have.  It 
was  the  kind  used  by  many  settlers  at  that  day.  It 
was  a  mortar  and  pestle  on  a  large  scale,  and,  on  the 
whole,  was  much  better  than  to  go  twenty  miles  to  a 
real  mill  that  could  grind  but  little  faster.  About 
two  quarts  of  corn  could  be  put  into  the  hole  in  the 
log  at  once,  and  a  few  strokes  from  the  pestle  on  the 
spring-pole  would  reduce  it  to  meal.  In  this  way  the 
family  could  be  provided  with  meal  at  short  notice, 


A  NEW  HOME  MADE.  65 

The  apparatus,  too,  corresponded  very  well  with  all  the 
surroundings.  For  a  Dutch  oven  and  spider  consti- 
tuted the  culinary  furniture  of  the  cabin.  All  their 
other  articles  of  iron-ware  were  at  the  bottom  of  the 
Ohio  River.  The  spider  was  used  for  griddle,  stew- 
pan,  gridiron,  kettle,  and  sundry  other  things,  in  addi- 
tion to  its  legitimate  purpose ;  proving  that  man's  real 
wants  are  few  in  number.  It  is  very  convenient  to 
be  provided  with  all  the  modern  improvements  in. 
this  line  ;  but  the  experience  of  the  Lincoln  family 
shows  that  happiness  and  life  can  be  promoted  with- 
out  them. 

This  mill  served  the  family  an  excellent  purpose  for 
several  years.  It  was  so  simple  that  it  needed  no  re- 
pairs, and  it  was  not  dependent  either  on  rain  or  sun- 
shine for  the  power  to  go.  Any  of  the  family  could 
go  to  mill  here.  Abraham  could  carry  a  grist  on  his 
arm  and  back,  and  play  the  part  of  miller  at  the  same 
time. 

The  Lincoln  family  was  not  fairly  settled  in  Indiana 
until  they  moved  into  their  new  log-cabin  in  the  autumn 
of  18 1 7.  By  that  time,  Abraham  had  become  a 
thorough  pioneer  boy.  He  had  made  considerable 
improvement,  too,  in  " reading  and  writing/'  The 
impulse  that  Hazel  gave  him  in  Kentucky  was  not  lost 
in  Indiana.  The  three  books  of  the  family  library 
continued  to  supply  his  intellectual  wants. 

During  the  long  winter  evenings  of  that  first  winter 
in  Indiana,  he  read  by  the  light  of  the  fire ;  for  they 
could  not  afford  the  luxury  of  any  other  light  in  their 
cabin.  This  was  true,  very  generally,  of  the  pioneer 
families :  they  had  no  more  than  ivas  absolutely  neces- 


66         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

sary  to  supply  their  wants.  They  could  exist  without 
lamp-oil  or  candles,  and  so  most  of  them  did  without 
either.  They  could  afford  the  largest  fire  possible, 
since  wood  was  so  plenty  that  they  studied  to  get  rid 
of  it.  Hence  the  light  of  the  fire  was  almost  equal  to 
%  good  chandelier.  Large  logs  and  branches  of  wood 
were  piled  together  in  the  fireplace,  and  its  mammoth 
blaze  lighted  up  every  nook  and  corner  or  the  dwelling. 
Hence  lamps  were  scarcely  needed. 

He  practised  penmanship  with  a  charred  stick  on  the 
oark  of  trees  and  on  slabs.  In  the  winter,  he  wrote 
his  name  in  the  snow  with  a  stick  ;  and,  in  the  summer, 
he  wrote  it  on  the  ground  in  the  garden.  In  this  way 
he  increased  his  ability  to  write,  along  with  his  ability 
to  read.  Still,  we  can  scarcely  conceive  of  a  more 
unpromising  situation  for  a  bright  boy. 

The  exact  location  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  cabin  was 
between  the  forks  of  Big  Pigeon  and  Little  Pigeon 
Creeks,  one  mile  and  a  half  from  what  is  now  the 
village  of  Gentryville,  His  cabin  was  surrounded  with 
a  dense  forest  of  oaks,  walnuts,  sugar-maples,  and  other 
varieties  of  trees  found  in  the  woods  of  North  America. 
The  trees  were  of  the  largest  growth,  affording  a  refuge 
and  shelter  for  birds  and  beasts,  which  abounded  here. 
Deer  and  wild  turkeys  furnished  abundant  food  for  the 
settlers,  whose  experience  with  the  rifle  was  their 
assurance  of  enough  to  eat.  Lincoln  was  expert  with 
the  rifle,  and  in  the  forests  of  Indiana  game  met  him 
on  every  hand.  There  was  a  small  open  space,  or 
prairie,  within  a  short  distance  from  his  cabin,  where 
the  deer  resorted  ;  and  here  he  made  many  a  good  shot 
to  supply  his  larder  with  venison. 


A   NEW  HOME  MADE.  6? 


The  situation  of  his  cabin  was  all  that  Mr.  Lincoln 
could  desire.  There  was  one  drawback,  however, — 
there  was  no  spring  of  water  within  a  mile.  One  of 
the  most  fatiguing  " chores"  that  Abraham  and  his 
sister  did,  in  those  days  of  hardship,  was  to  bring  water 
from  the  spring,  one  mile  away.  This  need  was  sub- 
sequently supplied  in  some  way.  Dennis  Hanks  says 
that  Mr.  Lincoln  "  riddled  his  land  like  a  honeycomb  " 
in  search  of  water ;  and,  perhaps,  he  found  it  through 
this  "  riddling  "  process.  There  is  a  story  that  he  em- 
ployed a  Yankee  with  a  divining-rod,  who  directed  him 
to  excellent  water  for  five  dollars ;  but  it  is  only  a 
story. 

How  he  obtained  possession  of  this  farm  is  explained 
by  Dennis  Hanks,  who  says,  "  He  settled  on  a  piece  of 
government  land, — eighty  acres.  The  land  he  after- 
wards bought  under  the  Two-Dollar  Act ;  was  to 
pay  for  it  in  instalments  ;  one-half  he  paid,  the  other 
half  he  never  paid,  and  finally  lost  the  whole  of  the 
land." 

We  have  said  that  Mr.  Lincoln  settled  in  Spencer 
County.  The  location  of  his  cabin  was  in  Perry  County ; 
but,  within  a  few  years,  through  increasing  immigration 
and  rapid  changes  and  improvements,  he  found  himself 
in  Spencer  County,  with  the  court-house  at  Rockport 
and  the  village  of  Gentryville  springing  up  about  a 
mile  and  a  half  distant.  Nine  years  after  he  settled  in 
Indiana,  a  post-office  was  established  at  Gentryville. 

David  Turnham,  who  was  a  boy  with  Abraham  in 
Spencer  County,  furnishes  an  interesting  account  of 
that  country  when  he  first  removed  thither,  as  follows  : 

"When  my  father  came  here  in  the  spring  of  1819, 


68  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

he  settled  in  Spencer  County,  within  one  mile  oi 
Thomas  Lincoln,  then  a  widower.  The  chance  for 
schooling  was  poor ;  but,  such  as  it  was,  Abraham  and 
myself  attended  the  same  schools. 

"  We  first  had  to  go  seven  miles  to  mill ;  and  then  it 
was  a  hand-mill  that  would  grind  from  ten  to  fifteen 
bushels  of  corn  in  a  day.  There  was  but  little  wheat 
grown  at  that  time  ;  and,  when  we  did  have  wheat,  we 
had  to  grind  it  on  the  mill  described,  and  use  it  without 
bolting,  as  there  were  no  bolts  in  the  country.  In  the 
course  of  two  or  three  years,  a  man  by  the  name  of 
Huffman  built  a  mill  on  Anderson  River,  about  twelve 
miles  distant.  Abe  and  I  had  to  do  the  milling  on 
horseback,  frequently  going  twice  to  get  one  grist. 
Then  they  began  building  horse-mills  of  a  little  better 
quality  than  the  hand-mills. 

"  The  country  was  very  rough,  especially  in  the  low- 
fends,  so  thick  with  bush  that  a  man  could  scarcely 
get  through  on  foot.  These  places  were  called  Roughs. 
The  country  abounded  in  game,  such  as  bears,  deer, 
turkeys,  and  the  smaller  game. 

"  At  that  time  there  were  a  great  many  deer-licks ; 
and  Abe  and  myself  would  go  to  these  licks  sometimes, 
and  watch  of  nights  to  kill  deer,  though  Abe  was  not 
so  fond  of  a  gun  as  I  was.  There  were  ten  or  twelve  of 
these  licks  in  a  small  prairie  on  the  creek,  lying  between 
Mr.  Lincoln's  and  Mr.  Wood's. 

"The  people  in  the  first  settling  of  this  country  were 
very  sociable,  kind,  and  accommodating;  but  there 
was  more  drunkenness  and  stealing  on  a  small  scale, 
more  immorality,  less  religion,  less  well-placed  con- 
fidence." 


A   NEW  HOME  MADE.  69 

Mr.  Turnham's  allusion  to  the  prevalence  of  drunken- 
ness, at  that  day,  renders  it  necessary  to  state  that  the 
prevalence  of  this  evil  was  the  source  of  much  anxiety 
to  Mrs.  Lincoln,  The  danger  to  her  boy  was  immi- 
nent ;  and  many  a  word  of  warning  and  counsel  dropped 
from  her  lips  into  his  young  ears.  When  Abraham 
began  his  public  career,  and  he  fearlessly  and  firmly 
avowed  his  total  abstinence  principles,  he  said  that  he 
jwed  much  to  one  counsel  of  his  mother;  viz.,  "Men 
become  drunkards  because  they  begin  to  drink ;  if  you 
never  begin  to  drink,  you  will  never  become  a  drunkard." 

The  sagacity  and  wisdom  of  the  mother  in  this 
striking  remark  will  not  appear  to  the  reader  until  it 
is  remembered  that,  at  that  day,  there  was  not  a  total 
abstinence  society  or  pledge  in  the  world.  Mrs.  Lin- 
coln had  never  heard  of  a  temperance  movement ;  for, 
indeed,  there  had  been  none,  except  on  the  smallest 
scale,  in  a  few  localities.  Yet,  she  proposed  the  only 
safeguard  to  her  boy,  —  one  that  proved  of  inestimable 
value  to  him,  as  he  publicly  and  privately  acknowledged 
many  years  thereafter. 

We  have  given  in  detail  the  time,  place,  and  circum- 
stances of  Abraham's  discipline  in  early  life,  that  the 
reader  may  appreciate  the  force  of  character  which 
lifted  the  incubus  of  poverty  and  obscurity,  and  macte 
him  famous  in  th<    v  rid. 


CHAPTER    V. 

AFTER    GAME. 

jjT  was  in  the  spring  of  1817,  when  Thomas 
Lincoln  was  preparing  to  put  his  first  seed 
into  the  soil  of  Indiana,  that  Abraham  made 
his  first  shot  at  game.  His  parents  were 
discussing  the  old  subject  —  their  loss  on  the  Ohio 
River;  when  Mrs.  Lincoln  remarked, — 

"  I'm  thoroughly  convinced  that  our  loss  was  all  for 
the  best.     I  think  I  can  see  it." 

"Glad  if  you  can,"  replied  Mr.  Lincoln,  "you're 
pretty  good  for  seeing  what  nobody  else  can  ;"  and  he 
uttered  this  sentence  rather  thoughtlessly,  as  his  mind 
was  really  absorbed  in  another  subject. 

"  I  don't  know  about  that ;  but  what  in  the  world 
would  you  have  done  with  all  the  whiskey,  if  we  had 
not  lost  any  of  it  in  the  river  ?  Never  could  sell  it  all 
here,  —  and  what  a  job  it  would  have  been  to  get  it 
here  from  the  Ferry !  " 

"  Well,  if  I  didn't  sell  it,  we  should  be  about  as  well 
off  as  we  are  now." 

"  Except  the  cost  of  getting  the  barrels  here." 

"That  wouldn't  be  much." 

"Then  there's  the  danger  of  the  evil  it  might  do. 
It's  dangerous  stuff  any  way,  as  the  case  of  many 
men  shows." 


AFTER  GAME.  71 


" 1  know  that ;  but  I  don't  fear  for  myself." 

"  Neither  do  I  fear  for  you  ;  but  I  was  thinking  of 
Abe.  You  know  how  it  is  with  boys  in  these  times, 
and  how  much  misery  whiskey  makes  in  a  great  many 
families.  And  I  can't  help  thinking  that  it  is  all  for 
the  best  that  most  of  it  is  in  the  river." 

0<  I  can't  say  but  what  it  is  ;  I  hope  it  is.  It  makes 
mischief  enough,  if  that's  all ;  and  if  I  dreamed  it 
would  make  any  in  my  family,  I  should  wish  that  all 
of  it  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  river." 

"  You  may  as  well  be  glad  now ;  for  we  have  less  to 
fear ;  and  perhaps  the  Lord  thought  it  was  best  to  put 
so  much  of  it  where  it  could  injure  no  one." 

"  So  be  it,  then  ;  but  I  must  go  to  my  work.  This 
weather  is  too  fine  to  be  lost  in  doing  nothing.  The 
stuff  is  all  sold  now,  so  that  there  is  no  fear  on  that 
score."  He  sold  a  barrel  to  Posey,  the  teamster,  who 
hauled  his  goods  from  the  Ferry,  and  the  remainder 
he  disposed  of  in  the  course  of  the  winter. 

Mr.  Lincoln  arose  and  went  out  to  his  work,  and 
within  ten  minutes  afterwards  Abraham  came  rushing 
into  the  cabin  in  a  state  of  great  excitement. 

"  Mother,"  he  exclaimed,  "  there's  a  flock  of  turkeys 
right  out  here  that  I  can  shoot.  See  there,"  and  he 
directed  her  to  look  through  a  crack  in  the  cabin  where 
the  clay  had  fallen  off.     "  Let  me  shoot,  mother." 

"Sure  enough,  Abe,  there  is  a  flock,"  responded  his 
mother,  as  she  caught  sight  of  the  turkeys ;  "a  fine 
shot  it  is,"  and  she  hastened  for  the  rifle  that  was 
always  kept  loaded. 

"  Be  quick,  mother,  I'll  fire  right  through  the  hole/' 
continued  Abe,  under  increasing  excitement. 


72  PIONEER  HOME    10  WHITE  HOUSE, 


His  mother  was  not  long  in  bringing  the  rifle,  and 
adjusting  it  through  the  loop-hole  between  the  logs, 
when,  with  a  few  quick  words  of  caution,  she  allowed 
him  to  fire. 

"Bang!"  went  the  rifle,  and  resounded  through  the 
forest  with  unusual  volume,  as  Abraham  thought  in 
his  intense  earnestness.  Both  mother  and  son  ran  out 
to  discover  the  result  of  the  shot,  and  by  the  time  they 
reached  the  spot,  the  smoke  had  cleared  away,  and 
there  lay  one  of  the  flock  dead. 

"  Killed  one,"  shouted  Abraham,  as  he  lifted  an  extra 
large  turkey  from  the  ground. 

"  So  you  have,"  answered  his  mother,  under  almost 
as  much  excitement  as  her  son. 

"A  monster!"  continued  the  lad,  surveying  the 
lusty  fellow  with  boyish  pride.  "  Did  you  ever  see 
such  a  big  one?" 

"  It  is  a  very  large  one,"  replied  his  mother;  "that 
was  a  good  shot,  Abe." 

By  this  time  Mr.  Lincoln  had  reached  the  spot. 
Hearing  the  report  of  the  gun,  he  left  his  work,  and 
hurried  back  to  learn  the  cause. 

"What's  the  firing  for  ?"  he  asked  hurriedly. 

"I've  killed  a  turkey,"  answered  Abraham,  exhibiti- 
ng in  triumph  the  dead  bird. 

(i  Did  you  do  that,  Abe  ?  " 

"Nobody  else  did  it,"  was  the  boy's  rather  char- 
acteristic reply. 

"  A  capital  shot,  Abe  ;  you'll  make  a  good  one  with 
the  rifle  if  you  keep  on,"  his  father  added,  intending  to 
praise  the  boy.  The  fact  was  it  was  not  a  capital  shot 
at  all :  he  accidentally  killed  the  turkey.     He  did  not 


AFTER  GAME.  73 


understand  the  use  of  a  gun  well  enough  to  make  a 
"  capital  shot."  The  turkey  happened  to  sit  in  the 
way  of  the  bullet,  and  was  killed  in  consequence  — 
that  was  all  there  was  of  it. 

We  have  already  said  that  pioneer  families  were 
dependent  upon  game  for  food.  On  this  account 
fathers  and  sons  became  good  marksmen,  and  even 
females  were  often  expert  with  the  rifle.  Mrs.  Lincoln 
could  load  and  fire  off  a  gun  if  necessary.  In  common 
with  her  sex,  she  was  accustomed  to  such  things,  and 
adapted  herself  to  circumstances. 

Marvellous  stories  are  told  about  the  skill  of  the 
pioneers  in  the  use  of  the  rifle,  and  good  authority 
substantiates  their  truthfulness.  One  writer  says : 
"  Several  individuals  who  conceive  themselves  adepts 
in  the  management  of  the  rifle,  are  often  seen  to  meet 
for  the  purpose  of  displaying  their  skill ;  and  they  put 
up  a  target,  in  the  centre  of  which  a  common-sized 
nail  is  hammered  for  about  two-thirds  its  length.  The 
marksmen  make  choice  of  what  they  consider  a  proper 
distance,  and  which  may  be  forty  paces.  Each  man 
clears  the  interior  of  his  tube,  places  a  ball  in  the 
palm  of  his  hand,  and  pours  as  much  powder  from  his 
horn  as  will  cover  it.  This  quantity  is  supposed  to  be 
sufficient  for  any  distance  short  of  a  hundred  yards. 
A  shot  that  comes  very  close  to  the  nail  is  considered 
that  of  an  indifferent  marksman  :  the  bending  of  the 
nail  is  of  course  somewhat  better ;  but  nothing  less 
than  hitting  it  right  on  the  head  is  satisfactory.  One 
out  of  three  shots  generally  hits  the  nail ;  and  should 
the  shooters  amount  to  half  a  dozen,  two  nails  are  fre- 
quently needed  before  each  can  have  a  shot." 


74         PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

The  same  writer  continues :  "  The  snuffing  of  a 
candle  with  a  ball  I  first  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing 
near  the  banks  of  Green  River,  not  far  from  a  large 
pigeon-roost,  to  which  I  had  previously  made  a  visit, 
I  had  heard  many  reports  of  guns  during  the  early  part 
of  a  dark  night,  and  knowing  them  to  be  those  of  rifles, 
I  went  forward  toward  the  spot  to  ascertain  the  cause. 
On  reaching  the  place,  I  was  welcomed  by  a  dozen 
tall,  stout  men,  who  told  me  they  were  exercising  for 
the  purpose  of  enabling  them  to  shoot  under  night,  at 
the  reflected  light  from  the  eyes  of  a  deer  or  wolf  by 
torchlight.  A  fire  was  blazing  near,  the  smoke  of 
which  rose  curling  among  the  thick  foliage  of  the 
irees.  At  a  distance  which  rendered  it  scarcely  dis 
tinguishable,  stood  a  burning  candle,  but  which,  in 
reality,  was  only  fifty  yards  from  the  spot  on  which 
we  all  stood.  One  man  was  within  a  few  yards  of  it 
to  watch  the  effects  of  the  shots,  as  well  as  to  light 
the  candle,  should  it  chance  to  go  out,  or  to  replace  it, 
should  the  shot  cut  it  across.  Each  marksman  shot 
in  his  turn.  Some  never  hit  either  the  snuff  or  the 
candle,  and  were  congratulated  with  a  loud  laugh, 
while  others  actually  snuffed  the  candle  without 
putting  it  out,  and  were  recompensed  for  their  dex- 
terity by  numerous  hurrahs.  One  of  them,  who  was 
particularly  expert,  was  very  fortunate,  and  snuffed  the 
candle  three  times  out  of  seven,  while  all  the  other  shots 
either  put  out  the  candle  or  cut  it  immediately  under 
the  light," 

Such  was  the  skill  of  riflemen  at  that  day.  Hence 
it  was  of  considerable  importance  that  boys  should 
iearn    how   to    fire    accurately.       Not    as  a    pastime 


AFTER   GAME.  ?$ 

was  it  valued,  but  as  a  means  of  gaining  subsistence. 
In  addition  to  procuring  game  for  the  table,  furs  were 
in  great  demand,  and  there  were  many  animals  valu- 
able on  this  account.  It  was  necessary,  therefore, 
that  Abraham  should  learn  the  art. 

The  summer  of  1 8 1 7  passed  away,  and  early  in  the 
autumn  the  loneliness  of  their  wilderness-life  was 
somewhat  relieved  by  the  coming  of  old  friends. 
Thomas  and  Betsy  Sparrow,  who  reared  Nancy  Hanks 
(Mrs.  Lincoln),  came  to  settle  by  their  side.  Mr.  Lin- 
coln had  just  removed  into  his  new  cabin,  so  the 
Sparrows  at  once  began  housekeeping  in  the  half-face 
camp.  Dennis  Hanks,  also,  had  a  home  with  the 
Sparrows,  and  Betsy  was  his  aunt ;  so  Dennis  re- 
moved to  Indiana  with  them. 

It  was  a  happy  day  for  the  Lincolns  when  the 
Sparrows  became  their  neighbors.  "  Sparrows  on 
the  house-top/ '  had  often  regaled  them  with  song,  but 
the  human  Sparrows  from  Kentucky  were  to  thejm 
mere  than  song — they  were  society.  To  Abraham 
especially  was  their  coming  a  real  godsend  ;  for  now 
he  had  an  intimate  and  constant  companion  in  his  jolly 
cousin,  Dennis  Hanks.  Such  an  acquisition  to  a  boy 
in  the  woods  was  more  of  a  boon  than  language  can 
describe. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

DARKER    DAYS. 

BRAHAM  continued  to  peruse  the  three 
books  of  the  family  library,  —  the  Bible, 
Catechism,  and  Spelling-Book.  There  was 
no  prospect  that  another  book  of  any  sort 
would  be  added  to  the  number.  The  thirst  for  knowl- 
edge begotten  in  his  soul  already  was  forced  to  find 
its  aliment  in  this  narrow  compass.  The  result  was, 
that  he  knew  the  Spelling-Book  and  Catechism  by 
heart ;  and  he  could  repeat  much  of  the  Bible.  His 
mind  was  hungry  for  knowledge ;  but  could  not  find 
enough  to  eat.  It  was  daily  put  upon  "  short  allow- 
ance/ ' 

In  these  circumstances  he  longed  for  other  books. 
He  began  to  tire  of  the  Bible.  "  I  don't  want  to  read 
the  Bible  all  the  time,"  he  often  remarked ;  "I  wish  I 
could  have  some  other  book  to  read/'  He  did  not 
know  what  other  books  were  in  existence.  His  parents 
were  not  wiser  than  he  in  that  respect.  But  his  mind 
was  ravenous,  and  would  have  accepted  almost  any 
sort  of  a  literary  dish,  good,  bad,  or  indifferent.  It 
pleaded  for  books. 

While  he  was  in  this  famishing  intellectual  state,  a 
fearful  disease  broke  out  among  the  settlers*  caUe*1 


DARKER  DAYS.  77 


"the  milk  disease."  Cows  that  gave  the  milk,  and  the 
people  who  drank  it,  became  sick,  suffered,  and  died. 
The  first  case  was  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  away,  but 
near  enough  to  create  alarm  in  the  Lincoln  cabin.  It 
was  not  long,  however,  before  the  dreaded  visitor  came 
to  their  door.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sparrow  were  stricken 
down  by  the  disease  nearly  at  the  same  time.  It  was 
in  the  summer  of  1818.  Consternation  now  turned 
the  attention  of  Abraham  from  books  to  the  perils  ol 
the  hour.  His  longing  for  other  books  was  exchanged 
for  fear  of  sudden  death. 

The  Sparrows  were  very  sick,  and  no  doctor  within 
thirty  or  forty  miles.  Mr.  Lincoln  and  his  wife,  to- 
gether with  other  settlers,  rendered  all  the  assistance 
in  their  power  to  the  ill-fated  couple.  Week  after  week 
their  sufferings  were  prolonged,  sometimes  worse,  some- 
times better,  hope  rising  or  waning  accordingly. 

"We  must  remove  them  into  our  cabin,"  said  Mrs. 
Lincoln  to  her  husband  ;  "  they  must  have  better 
quarters  and  care."  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sparrow  were 
as  father  and  mother  tu  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and  her  love 
for  them  was  like  that  of  a  daughter. 

"  Perhaps  it  will  be  best ;  they  can't  live  long  any 
where  in  my  opinion,"  Mr.  Lincoln  replied. 

"I  can  look  after  them  much  better  here',"  con 
tinued  Mrs.  Lincoln  ;  "  and  whether  they  live  or  die, 
we  shall  have  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  we  did 
everything  in  our  power  for  them." 

The  sick  couple  were  removed  into  the  Lincoln 
cabin  in  September,  and  no  one  was  more  rejoiced  over 
tne  event  than  Dennis  Hanks,  to  whom,  also,  the  Spar- 
rows were  as  father  and  mother.     Dennis  emphasized 


78  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


his  joy  over  the  removal  by  saying  he  was  glad  "to 
get  out  of  the  mean  little  half -face  campy 

The  removal  brought  no  relief  to  the  sinking  pa 
tients.  In  a  few  days  both  of  them  died,  spreading 
gloom  over  the  neighborhood,  and  creating  the  sad 
dest  experience  Abraham  and  Dennis  ever  knew. 

A  spot  was  selected  for  the  burial-place  of  the  dead> 
about  one  half  mile  from  the  cabin,  on  a  beautiful  knoll 
that  nestled  under  the  shadow  of  mammoth  trees.  Mr. 
Lincoln  was  the  only  settler  in  the  vicinity  capable  of 
making  a  coffin  ;  and  he  set  about  the  sorrowful  work, 
making  them  out  of  "  green  lumber,  cut  with  a  whip- 
saw.'  '  They  were  rough  and  heavy,  like  everything 
else  connected  with  pioneer  life ;  but  answered  their 
purpose  well.  Without  funeral  ceremonies,  the 
neighbors  gathered  from  far  and  near,  and  tearfully 
committed  their  deceased  friends  to  the  dust. 

A  few  days  only  elapsed  after  the  burial,  before 
Mrs.  Lincoln  was  attacked,  much  more  violently  than 
the  Sparrows,  with  the  same  dreaded  disease.  It  was 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning.  Abraham  was 
awakened  out  of  a  sound  sleep,  and  hurried  away  foi 
the  nearest  neighbor,  Mrs.  Woods,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  Dennis,  who  became  a  permanent  member  ot 
Lincoln's  family  after  the  death  of  the  Sparrows,  and 
was  Abraham's  bed-fellow  in  the  loft,  made  his  ap- 
pearance, to  render  any  assistance  within  his  power. 
In  the  absence  of  physicians,  a  strong  bond  of  sym- 
pathy united  pioneer  families,  and  the  feminine  mem- 
bers were  always  ready  to  tender  their  best  nursing 
abilities  to  the  sick.  Nor  were  they  altogether  unsuc- 
cessful in  their  treatment.     Some  of  them  exhibited 


DARKER  DAYS.  79 

<— —  i»-  — — - — — —     *-  .  -, — — 

much  skill  in  managing  diseases,  having  been  thrown 
upon  their  own  resources  for  a  long  penod,  reflect- 
ing and  studying  for  themselves.  As  physicians  could 
not  be  had,  they  were  compelled  to  do  the  best  thing 
possible  for  themselves. 

Mrs.  Woods  was  not  long  in  coming  to  her  relief, 
and  before  the  close  of  that  day  several  other  neighbors, 
who  were  notified  of  Mrs.  Lincoln's  sickness,  came  to 
proffer  assistance.  The  tidings  of  her  sudden  attack 
spread  so  rapidly,  that,  within  two  or  three  days,  all 
the  y;oneer  families  in  the  vicinity  heard  of  it,  and  their 
proffers  0f  assistance  were  prompt  and  tender.  But  the 
patient  steadily  grew  worse,  and  soon  became  satisfied 
that  her  sickness  would  prove  fatal.  Some  persons 
attacked  with  that  singular  disease  lingered  for  weeks, 
as  the  Sparrows  did ;  but  Mrs.  Lincoln's  sickness  was 
violent  and  brief.  On  the  fifth  day  of  October,  she 
expired,  leaving  the  Lincoln  cabin  more  desolate  than 
ever.  Coming  so  speedily  after  the  Sparrows  passed 
away,  death  had  additional  terrors  to  the  living.  Den- 
nis Hanks  remembers  the  woe-begone  appearance  of 
Abraham  from  the  time  his  mother's  life  was  despaired 
of  until  weeks  after  she  was  laid  in  her  grave.  He  was 
nine  years  old,  thoughtful  and  sensible,  not  much  in- 
clined to  talk  about  the  event,  but  ever  looking  as  if 
i  pall  were  drawn  over  his  heart.  The  reader  can 
xnagine,  perhaps,  what  no  language  can  convey,  the 
loss  of  a  good  mother  to  a  bright,  obedient,  and  trusting 
boy,  hid  away  in  the  woods,  where  a  mother's  presence 
md  love  must  be  doubly  precious.  The  bitter  ex- 
perience was  well  suited  to  make  the  loneliness  of 
pioneer  life  vastly  more  lonely,  and  its  real  hardships 
vastly  harder 


80         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE 

Preparations  were  made  for  the  burial.  With  his 
own  hands,  Thomas  Lincoln  constructed  a  rough  coffin 
for  his  wife,  and  she  was  laid  beside  the  Sparrows  on 
the  knoll.  One  party  thinks  that  one  neighbor  read 
the  Scriptures  and  another  offered  prayer;  but  it  is 
probable  that  she  was  buried,  as  her  foster-parents 
were,  without  any  ceremonies  —  silently  deposited 
in  the  ground  with  no  special  tribute,  save  honest 
tears. 

Here,  better  than  elsewhere,  we  can  describe  an 
event  that  is  worthy  of  record.  It  occurred  several 
months  after  the  death  of  Mrs.  Lincoln. 

"  You  must  write  a  letter  for  me,  Abe,  to  Parson 
Elkins,"  said  his  father,  one  evening.  "  You  can  write 
well  enough  now  to  do  that."  Abraham  had  passed 
his  tenth  birthday. 

"  If  you  can  tell  me  what  to  write,  I  can  do  it," 
answered  the  boy. 

"That  I  will  do.  It  wiM  be  your  first  letter,  you 
know,  and  you  must  remember  that  your  father  never 
wrote  one  —  never  knew  enough  to  write  one." 

"  What  do  you  want  I  should  write  about  ? "  inquired 
Abraham. 

"Write  about  the  death  of  your  mother.  He  knows 
nothing  about  it  yet ;  and  I  want  to  ask  him  to  visit  us, 
and  preach  a  funeral  sermon." 

"When  do  you  want  he  should  come  ?" 

"When  he  can,  I  s'pose.  He'll  take  his  own  time 
for  it,  though  I  hope  he'll  come  soon." 

"He  may  be  dead,"  suggested  Abraham. 

"What  makes  you  think  so?" 

"  He's  as  likely  to  die  as  mother,  ain't  he  ?  and  he 


DARKER  DAYS.  8 

may  be  dead  when  we  don't  know  it,  the  same  as  she's 
dead  when  he  don't  know  it." 

"Well,  there's  something  in  that,"  answeied  his 
father  ;  "but  we'll  see  how  you  can  make  out  writing  a 
letter." 

Pen  and  paper  were  provided,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  pro 
ceeded  to  dictate  the  letter.  Re  directed  him  to  wTrite 
about  the  death  of  Mrs.  Lincoln,  when  it  occurred,  and 
under  what  circumstances,  and  to  invite  him  to  visit 
them,  and  preach  a  funeral  sermon.  He  also  gave  x 
description  of  their  new  home,  and  their  journey 
thither,  and  wrote  of  their  future  prospects. 

"Now  read  it  over,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"The  whole  of  it?" 

"  Of  course ;  I  want  to  hear  it  all.  I  may  think  of 
something  else  by  that  time." 

Abraham  commenced  to  read  it,  while  his  father  sat 
the  very  picture  of  satisfaction.  There  was  genuine 
happiness  to  him  in  having  his  son  prepared  to  write  a 
letter.  Never  before  had  there  been  a  member  of  his 
family  who  could  perform  this  feat.  It  was  a  memor- 
able event  to  him. 

"See  how  much  it  is  worth  to  be  able  to  write,"  said 
he,  as  Abraham  finished  reading  the  letter.  "  It's  worth 
ten  times  as  much  as  it  cost  to  be  able  to  write  only 
that  one  letter." 

"  It  ain't  much  work  to  learn  to  write,"  said  Abra- 
ham ;  "  I'd  work  as  hard  again  for  it  before  I'd  give 
it  up." 

"  You'd  have  to  give  it  up,  if  you  were  knocked  about 
as  I  was  when  a  boy." 

"I  know  that" 


82  PIONEER  HOME    JO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"  You  don't  knew  it  as  I  do  ;  and  I  hope  you  nevei 
will.  But  it's  worth  more  than  the  best  farm  to  know 
how  to  write  a  letter  as  well  as  that." 

"  I  shall  write  one  better  than  that  yet,"  said  Abraham. 
"  But  how  long  will  it  take  for  the  letter  to  go  to  Parson 
Elkins?" 

"  That's  more  than  1  can  tell ;  but  it  will  go  there 
some  time,  and  I  hope  it  will  bring  him  here." 

"  He  won't  want  to  come  so  far  as  this,"  suggested 
Abraham. 

'*  It  ain't  so  far  for  him  as  it  was  for  us." 

"Why  ain't  it?" 

"  Because  he  lives  nearer  the  line  of  Indiana  than  we 
did.  It  ain't  more  than  seventy-five  miles  for  him  to 
come,  and  he  often  rides  as  far  as  that." 

The  letter  went  on  its  errand,  and  Abraham  was 
impatient  to  learn  the  result.  On  the  whole,  it  was 
rather  an  important  event  in  his  young  life,  —  the 
writing  of  that  first  letter.  Was  it  strange  that  he 
should  query  whether  it  would  reach  the  good  minister 
to  whom  it  was  sent?  Would  it  be  strange  if  the 
writing  of  it  proved  one  of  the  happy  influences  that 
started  him  off  upon  a  career  of  usefulness  and  fame  ? 
We  shall  see. 

Mr.  Lincoln  had  much  to  say  to  his  neighbors  about 
:he  letter  that  his  son  had  written,  and  they  had  much 
to  say  to  him.  It  was  considered  remarkable  for  a  boy 
of  his  age  to  do  such  a  thing.  Not  one  quarter  of  the 
adults  in  all  that  region  could  write  ;  and  *-hi?  ^0* 
rendered  the  ability  of  the  boy  in  tlA*  regard  ah  Chfc 
more  marvellous.  It  was  noised  abroad,  and  the  result 
was,  that  Abraham  had  frequent  applications  from  the 


DARKER  DAYS.  83 


neighbors  tc>  write  letters  for  them.  Nor  was  he  indis- 
posed to  gratify  their  wishes.  One  of  his  traits  of 
character  was  a  generous  disposition  to  assist  others, 
and  it  prompted  him  to  yield  to  their  wishes  in  writing 
letters  for  them.  Nor  was  it  burdensome  to  him,  but 
the  opposite.  He  delighted  to  do  it.  And  thus,  as 
a  consequence  of  his  acquiring  the  art  of  penmanship, 
far-distant  and  long-absent  friends  of  the  pioneer  fam- 
ilies heard  from  their  loved  ones. 

The  letter  brought  the  parson.  After  the  lapse  of 
about  three  months  he  came.  The  letter  reached  him 
m  Kentucky,  after  considerable  delay,  and  he  embraced 
the  first  opportunity  to  visit  his  old  friends.  Abraham 
had  almost  concluded  that  his  letter  was  lost,  as  the 
favorite  minister  did  not  come.  But  one  day,  when 
the  lad  was  about  two  miles  from  home,  who  should  he 
see  coming  but  Parson  Elkins,  on  his  old  bay  horse ! 
He  recognized  him  at  once,  and  was  delighted  to  see 
him. 

"Why,  Abe,  is  that  you?"  exclaimed  the  parson. 
"  Am  I  so  near  your  home  ?  " 

"Yes,  sir;  did  you  get  my  letter?"  Abraham 
thought  of  the  memorable  letter  the  first  thing.  He 
had  good  evidence  before  him  that  the  letter  reached 
its  destination,  but  he  would  know  certainly. 

"  Your  letter !"  exclaimed  Parson  Elkins,  inquiringly. 
"  I  got  your  father's  letter."  Abraham  did  not  stop  to 
think  that  the  letter  went  in  his  father's  name. 

"  I  wrote  it,"  he  said. 

"  You  wrote  it !     Is  that  so  ? " 

"  Yes,  sir ;  father  can't  write,  you  know." 

"  O,  yes  ;  I  do  remember  now  that  he  couldn't  write; 


$4  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

and  so  you  did  it  ?  Not  many  boys  that  can  write  like 
that." 

"  I':  was  the  first  letter  I  ever  wrote." 

"Better  still  is  that,  —  the  first  one?  Well,  you 
needn't  be  ashamed  of  that." 

They  were  advancing  towards  the  cabin  during  this 
conversation,  Abraham  running  alongside  the  horsey 
and  the  parson  looking  kindly  upon  him. 

"There's  our  house!"  exclaimed  Abraham,  as  they 
came  in  sight  of  it.  "  We  live  there,"  pointing  with 
his  finger. 

"  Ah  !  that's  a  pleasant  place  to  live.  And  there's 
your  father,  I  think,  too." 

"  Yes,  that's   he.     He'll  be  glad  to  see  you." 

"And  I  shall  be  glad  to  see  him." 

By  this  time  they  came  near  Mr.  Lincoln,  who  re- 
cognized Parson  Elkins,  and  gave  him  a  most  cordial 
greeting.  He  was  really  taken  by  surprise,  although 
he  had  not  relinquished  all  expectation  of  the  parson 
coming. 

"  You  find  me  in  a  lonely  condition,"  said  Mr.  Lin- 
coln.    "  Death  has  made  a  great  change  in  my  family." 

"  Very  great  indeed,"  responded  Mr.  Elkins.  "  I 
know  how  great  your  loss  is  ;  but  '  Whom  the  Lord 
loveth,  he  chasteneth.'" 

Assenting  to  this,  Mr.  Lincoln  continued, — 

"  Now,  let  me  say,  that,  while  you  are  here,  I  want 
you  should  preach  a  funeral  sermon.  You  know  all 
about  my  wife.  You  will  stay  over  next  Sunday, 
won't  you?"     It  was  now  Wednesday. 

"Why,  yes,  I  can  stay  as  long  as  that,  though  I 
must  be  about  my  Master's  work." 


DARKER  DAYS.  8$ 

"  You  will  be  about  your  Master's  work,  if  you  stay 
and  preach  a  funeral,  sermon  ;  and  it  jnry  do  a  greaf 
sight  of  good. " 

"  Very  true ;  and  I  shall  be  glad  to  stay ;  for  if  any 
one  ever  deserved  a  funeral  sermon,  it  is  your  wife. 
But  where  shall  I  preach  it?" 

"  At  her  grave.  I've  had  that  arranged  in  my  mind 
for  a  long  time  ;  and  we'll  notify  the  people  ;  there  will 
be  a  large  attendance.  The  people  thought  a  deal  of 
her  here." 

It  was  arranged  that  Mr.  Elkins  should  preach  the 
funeral  sermon  at  the  grave  of  Mrs.  Lincoln  on  the 
following  Sabbath.  Accordingly,  notice  was  sent 
abroad  to  the  distance  of  twelve  or  fifteen  miles,  and 
a  platform  was  erected  near  the  grave.  Every  prep- 
aration was  made  for  the  solemn  event.  Although 
nearly  a  year  had  elapsed  since  Mrs.  Lincoln  died,  yet 
a  sermon  to  her  memory  was  no  less  interesting  to 
her  surviving  friends. 

In  the  mean  time,  Mr.  Elkins  busied  himself  in  in- 
tercourse  with  the  family  ;  and  he  visited  some  of  the 
neighbors,  and  conversed  with  them  on  spiritual 
things.  Abraham,  too,  received  his  special  attention. 
The  boy  had  improved  rapidly  since  he  left  Kentucky, 
and  his  remarkable  precocity  was  suited  to  draw  the 
attention  of  such  a  preacher. 

The  Sabbath  arrived,  —  a  bright,  beautiful  day. 
From  a  distance  of  twelve  or  fifteen  miles,  the  settlers 
came  to  listen  to  the  sermon.  Entire  families  assem- 
bled, parents  and  children,  from  the  oldest  to  the 
youngest.  Hoary  age  and  helpless  childhood  were 
there.    They  came  in  carts,  on  horseback,  and  on  foot. 


86         PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

any  way  to  get  there.  As  they  had  preaching  only 
when  one  of  these  pioneer  preachers  visited  that  vicin- 
ity, it  was  a  treat  to  most  of  the  inhabitants,  and  they 
manifested  their  interest  by  a  general  turn-out.  The 
present  occasion,  however,  was  an  unusual  one,  as  the 
funeral  sermon  of  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  to  be  preached. 

Parson  Elkins  was  an  earnest  man,  and  the  occasion 
'nspired  him  with  unusual  fervor.  None  of  the  people 
had  ever  listened  to  him  before,  except  the  Lincoln 
family,  and  they  were  delighted  with  his  services. 
His  tribute  to  the  memory  of  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  con- 
sidered just  and  excellent.  None  thought  that  too 
much  was  said  in  her  praise.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
general  feeling  was  rather,  as  one  of  the  number  ex- 
pressed it,  that,  "  say  what  he  might  in  praise  of  her, 
he  couldn't  say  too  much." 

Abraham  was  deeply  interested  in  the  sermon,  and 
it  brought  all  his  mother's  tenderness  and  love  afresh 
to  his  mind.  To  him  it  was  almost  like  attending  her 
funeral  over  again.  Her  silent  dust  was  within  a  few 
feet  of  him,  and  vivid  recollection  of  her  worth  was  in 
his  heart. 

He  drank  in  the  sentiments  of  the  discourse,  too. 
He  usually  did  this,  as  he  was  accustomed  to  think  for 
himself.  A  few  years  later  he  often  criticized  the  ser- 
mons to  which  he  listened,  much  to  the  amusement  of 
those  with  whom  he  conversed.  He  sometimes  called 
in  question  the  doctrines  preached.  This  was  one  of 
the  things  in  which  his  precocity  appeared.  It  was  at 
this  point  that  his  mental  activity  and  power  were  often 
seen.  But  the  sentiments  of  the  aforesaid  funeral 
sermon  especially  impressed  his  mind. 


DARKER  DAYS.  87 

At  this  time  of  his  life  he  was  a  close  listener  to  the 
conversation  of  the  neighbors  ;  and  he  would  become 
almost  vexed  over  the  conversation  of  some  of  them, 
who  talked  so  unintelligibly  through  ignorance,  that 
he  could  not  understand  them.  His  active  brain 
labored  to  compass  every  subject,  and  he  sometimes 
fretted  over  unlettered  talkers  whose  meaning  he 
failed  to  comprehend.  After  he  came  into  the  pos 
session  of  additional  books,  he  was  wont  to  discuss  their 
subject-matter,  and  express  his  own  views  freely. 

In  this  respect  he  was  unlike  most  boys,  who  are 
superficial  in  their  views  of  things.  They  read,  and 
that  is  the  end  o£  it.  They  think  no  more  about  it, — 
at  least,  they  do  not  inquire  into  the  why  and  where- 
fore of  matters  stated  ;  and  so  the  habit  of  sliding  over 
things  loosely  is  formed.  They  do  not  think  for 
themselves.  They  accept  things  as  true,  because 
others  say  they  are  true.  They  are  satisfied  with 
knowing  that  things  are,  without  asking  why  they  are. 
But  Abraham  was  not  so.  He  thought,  reflected  ; 
and  this  developed  his  mental  powers  faster  than  even 
school  could  do  it. 

The  reader  should  understand  more  about  these 
pioneer  preachers,  in  order  to  appreciate  the  influ- 
ences that  formed  Abraham's  character,  and  therefore 
we  will  stop  here  to  give  some  account  of  them. 

They  were  not  generally  men  of  learning  and  cul 
ture,  though  some  of  them  were  men  of  talents.  Few, 
if  any  of  them,  were  ever  in  college,  and  some  of  them 
were  never  in  school.  But  they  bad  a  call  to  preach, 
as  they  believed,  and  good  and  true  hearts  for  doing  it. 
Many  of  them  preached  almost  every  day,   travelling 


88         PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

kom  place  to  place  on  horseback^  studying  their  ser- 
mons in  the  saddle,  and  carrying  about  with  them  all 
the  library  they  had  in  their  saddle-bags.  They  stopped 
where  night  overtook  them,  and  it  was  sometimes 
miles  away  from  any  human  habitation,  with  no  bed 
but  the  earth,  and  no  covering  but  the  canopy  of 
heaven.  They  labored  without  a  salary,  and  were 
often  poorly  clothed  and  scantily  fed,  being  con 
strained  to  preach  by  the  love  of  Christ.  The  follow 
ing  account  of  two  pioneer  preachers,  by  Milburn,  will 
give  the  reader  a  better  idea  of  this  class  of  useful 
men  than  any  description  of  ours,  and  it  will  be  ^ead 
with  interest  :  — 

"  One  of  these  preachers,  who  travelled  all  through 
the  Northwestern  Territory,  a  tall,  slender,  graceful 
man,  with  a  winning  countenance  and  kindly  eye, 
greatly  beloved  by  all  to  whom  he  ministered,  was 
presented  by  a  large  landholder  with  a  title-deed  of 
three  hundred  and  twenty  acres.  The  preacher  was 
extremely  poor,  and  there  had  been  many  times  when 
he  received  scarcely  enough  support  to  keep  soul  and 
body  together.  Yet  he  labored  on,  and  did  much 
good.  He  seemed  pleased  with  his  present  of  land, 
and  went  on  his  way  with  a  grateful  heart.  But  in 
three  months  he  returned,  and  met  his  benefactor  at 
the  door,  saying,  l  Here,  sir,  I  want  to  give  you  back 
your  title-deed.' 

" '  What's  the  matter  ? '  said  his  friend  surprised 
'Any  flaw  in  it  ?' 

"  <  No.' 

"  '  Isn't  it  good  land?* 

u  i  Good  as  any  in  the  State/ 


DARKER  DAYS.  89 


w  'Sickly  situation  ?•' 

"   Healthy  as  any  other.' 

"  i  Do  you  think  I  repent  my  gift  ? ' 

■*  'I  haven't  the  slightest  reason  to  doubt  your  gen- 
^•ojity.' 

"  'Why  don't  you  keep  it,  then  ? ' 

"'Well,  sir,1  said  the  preacher,  'you  know  I  am 
vtrrv  fond  of  singing,  and  there's  one  hymn  in  my 
book  the  singing  of  which  is  one  of  the  greatest  com- 
forts of  my  life.  I  have  not  been  able  to  sing  it  with 
r^y  whole  heart  since  I  was  here.  A  part  of  it  runs 
in  this  way  :  — 

"  No  foot  of  land  do  I  possess 
No  cottage  in  the  wilderness  ; 
A  poor  wayfaring  man, 
I  lodge  awhile  in  tents  below, 
And  gladly  wander  to  and  fro, 
Till  I  my  Canaan  gain  ; 
There  is  my  house  and  portion  fair, 
My  treasure  and  my  heart  are  there, 
And  my  abiding  home." 

"'Take  your  title-deed/  he  added;  'I  had  rather 
sing  that  hymn  with  a  clear  conscience  than  own 
America. ' 

"  There  was  another  preacher  of  the  pioneer  class 
so  intent  upon  his  work  that  hunger  and  nakedness 
did  not  affright  him.  He  was  more  scholarly  than 
most  of  the  preachers  around  him,  and  often  sat  up 
half  the  night,  at  the  cabins  of  the  hunters  where  he 
stopped,  to  study.  These  cabins  were  about  twelve 
by  fourteen  feet,  and  furnished  accommodations  for 
the  family,  sometimes  numbering  ten  or  twelve  chil 


go  PIONEEK  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

dren  ;  and,  as  the  forests  abounded  in  'varmints?  the 
hens  and  chickens  were  taken  in  for  safe  keeping. 
Here,  after  the  family  had  retired,  he  would  light  a 
pine  knot,  'stick  it  up  in  one  corner  of  the  huge  fire 
place,  lay  himself  down  on  the  flat  of  his  stomach  in 
the  ashes/  and  study  till  far  into  the  night. 

"  Many  a  time  was  the  bare,  bleak  mountain-side 
nis  bed,  the  wolves  yelling  a  horrid  chorus  in  his  ears. 
Sometimes  he  was  fortunate  enough  to  find  a  hollow 
log,  within  whose  cavity  he  inserted  his  body,  and 
found  it  a  good  protection  from  the  rain  or  frost. 

"  Once,  seated  at  the  puncheon  dinner-table  with 
a  hunter's  family,  the  party  is  startled  by  affrighted 
screams  from  the  door-yard.  Rushing  out,  they  be- 
hold a  great  wildcat  bearing  off  the  youngest  child. 
Seizing  a  rifle  from  the  pegs  over  the  door,  the 
preacher  raises  it  to  his  shoulder,  casts  a  rapid  glance 
along  the  barrel,  and  delivers  his  fire.  The  aim  has 
been  unerring,  but  too  late,  —  the  child  is  dead,  already 
destroyed  by  the  fierce  animal. 

"  That  same  year  he  had  a  hand-to-hand  fight  with 
a  bear,  from  which  conflict  he  came  forth  victor,  his 
knife  entering  the  vitals  of  the  creature  just  as  he  was 
about  to  be  enfolded  in  the  fatal  hug. 

"  Often  he  emerged  from  the  wintry  stream,  his 
garments  glittering  in  the  clear,  cold  sunlight,  as  if 
they  had  been  of  burnished  steel  armor,  chill  as  the 
touch  of  death.  During  that  twelvemonth,  in  the 
midst  of  such  scenes,  he  travelled  on  foot  and  horse- 
back four  thousand  miles,  preached  four  hnndi'ed  times, 
and  found,  on  casting  up  the  receipts, — -yarn  socks, 
woollen  vests,  cotton  shirts,  and  a  little  silver  change. 


DARKER  DAYS.  9 1 


—  that  his  salary  amounted  to  twelve  dollars  and  ten 
cents. 

"  Yet  he  persevered,  grew  in  knowledge  and  influ- 
ence, became  a  doctor  of  divinity,  and  finally  was 
made  president  cf  a  university.  He  is  known  on  th& 
page  of  history  as  Henry  Bidleman  Bascom.,, 

Such  were  the  pioneer  preachers  of  the  West ;  of 
simple-hearted  piety,  lofty  faith,  a  fiery  zeal,  un- 
wavering fortitude,  and  a  practical  turn  of  mind, 
through  which  they  did  a  great  work  for  God. 

We  have  made  this  digression  from  the  thread  of 
our  story,  to  show  what  influences  of  the  ministry 
were  thrown  around  Abraham's  early  life.  It  is  true 
the  preachers  to  whom  he  listened  were  not  "  circuit- 
riders,"  as  travelling  preachers  were  called.  They 
were  Baptist  ministers,  who  lived  within  twenty  miles, 
and  who  occasionally  preached  in  that  neighborhood. 
During  the  first  few  years  of  Abraham's  residence  in 
Indiana,  there  was  one  Jeremiah  Cash,  who  sometimes 
preached  in  the  Vicinity,  and  the  young  listener  be- 
came much  interested  in  him.  A  few  years  later,  two 
others  came  to  that  section  of  country  to  live.  Their 
names  were  John  Richardson  and  Young  Lamar. 
One  of  them  dwelt  seven  or  eight  miles  from  Abra 
ham's  home  on  the  north,  and  the  other  eight  or  ten 
miles  to  the  south  ;  and  both  of  them  were  wont  to 
preach  at  Mr.  Lincoln's  cabin,  and  at  other  cabins,  as 
they  had  opportunity.  Sometimes  they  preached  in 
the  open  air,  as  Mr.  Elkins  did  the  funeral  sermon. 
This  was  always  the  case  when  more  people  attended 
than  could  crowd  into  a  log-house. 


92  PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Such  was  all  the  pulpit  influence  that  reached  the 
boyhood  and  youth  of  Abraham.  Yet  it  left  indelible 
impressions  upon  his  mind.  Though  it  was  small  and 
inconstant,  apparently,  in  comparison  with  the  pulpit 
advantages  that  boys  enjoy  at  the  present  day,  it 
imbued  his  soul  with  sentiments  that  were  never 
obliterated.  He  was  much  indebted  to  the  unpolished 
eloquence  of  those  pioneer  preachers,  whose  sterling 
piety  caused  them  to  proclaim  the  truth  with  fidelity 
and  earnestness.  This  was  one  of  the  few  influences 
that  contributed  to  make  him  a  remarkable  man. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

BRIGHTER    HOURS. 

jjBRAHAM  deeply  felt  the  change  that  death 
had  wrought  in  his  cabin  home,  and,  for 
weeks,  his  mind  was  absorbed  in  his  loss. 
Perhaps  his  oppressive  sense  of  loneliness 
and  his  grief  would  have  continued,  but  for  an  unex- 
pected blessing  that  came  to  him  in  the  shape  of  a 
book.  His  father  met  with  a  copy  of  The  Pilgrim's 
Progress,  at  the  house  of  an  acquaintance,  twenty 
miles  away  or  more,  and  he  borrowed  it  for  Abraham. 
The  boy  was  never  more  happily  surprised  than  he 
was  when  his  father,  on  his  return,  said : 

"  Look  here,  Abe,  Fve  found  something  for  you/* 
at  the  same  time  exhibiting  the  book. 

"  Found  it ! "  exclaimed  Abraham,  supposing  that  his 
father  meant  that  he  picked  it  up  in  the  woods  or  fields. 

"  No,  no  ;  you  don't  understand  me.  I  meant  that  I 
came  across  it  at  Pierson's  house,  and  I  borrowed  it  for 
you." 

"  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  said  Abraham,  taking  the  book 
and  reading  the  title  ;  "  that  will  be  good,  I  should  think." 
He  knew  nothing  about  the  book ;  he  never  heard  of  it 
before. 


94         PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"I  shall  want  to  hear  it,"  said  his  father.  "  I  heard 
about  that  book  many  years  ago,  but  I  never  heard  it 
read." 

"What  is  it  about?"  asked  Abraham. 

"You'll  find  that  out  by  reading  it,"  answered  his 
father. 

"And  I  won't  be  long  about  it  neither,"  continued 
Abraham.     "  I  know  I  shall  like  it." 

"  I  know  you  will,  too." 

"  I  don't  see  how  you  know,  if  you  never  heard  it 
read." 

"  On  account  of  what  I've  heard  about  it." 

And  it  turned  out  to  be  so.  Abraham  sat  down  to 
read  the  volume  very  much  as  some  other  boys  would 
sit  down  to  a  good  dinner.  He  found  it  better  even 
than  he  expected.  It  was  the  first  volume  that  he  was 
provided  with  after  the  spelling-book,  Catechism,  and 
Bible,  and  a  better  one  could  not  have  been  found. 
He  read  it  through  once,  and  was  half-way  through  it 
a  second  time,  when  he  received  a  present  of  another 
volume,  in  which  he  became  deeply  interested.  It  was 
^Esop's  Fables,  presented  to  him,  partly  on  account  of 
his  love  of  books,  and  partly  because  it  would  serve  to 
occupy  his  mind  and  lighten  his  sorrow. 

He  read  the  fables  over  and  over  until  he  could  repeat 
almost  the  entire  contents  of  the  volume.  He  was 
thoroughly  Interested  in  the  moral  lesson  that  each 
fable  taught,  and  derived  therefrom  many  valuable 
hints  that  he  carried  with  him  through  life.  On  the 
whole,  he  spent  more  time  over  ^Esop's  Fables  than  he 
did  over  The  Pilgrim's  Progress,  although  he  was  really 
charmed  by  the  latter.      But  there  was  a  practical  turn 


BRIGHTER  HOURS.  95 

to  the  fables  that  interested  him,  and  he  could  easily 
recollect  the  stories.  Perhaps  his  early  familiarity 
with  this  book  laid  the  foundation  for  that  facility  at 
apt  story-telling  that  distinguished  him  through  life. 
It  is  easy  to  see  how  such  a  volume  might  beget  anc 
foster  a  taste  in  this  direction.  Single  volumes  have 
moulded  the  reader's  character  and  decided  his  destiny 
more  than  once,  and  that,  too,  when  far  less  absorbing 
interest  was  manifested  in  the  book.  It  is  probable, 
then,  that  yEsop's  Fables  exerted  a  decided  influence 
upon  Abraham's  character  and  life.  The  fact  that  he 
read  the  volume  so  much  as  to  commit  the  larger  part 
of  it  to  memory  adds  force  to  this  opinion. 

With  two  new  books  of  such  absorbing  interest,  it 
was  not  strange  that  Abraham  was  disposed  to  neglect 
his  daily  labor.  His  father  could  readily  discover  that 
^Esop  had  more  attractions  for  him  than  ax  or  hoe 
Nor  was  he  inclined  to  break  the  spell  that  bound  him 
until  he  actually  feared  that  the  books  would  make  him 
"lazy." 

"  Come,  Abe,  you  mustn't  neglect  your  work ;  weVe 
lots  to  do,  and  books  must  not  interfere,"  was  his 
father's  gentle  rebuke. 

"  In  a  minute,"  answered  the  boy,  just  like  mos? 
other  boys  of  that  age,  who  are  " book-worms." 

"  That's  what  makes  boys  lazy,  waiting  to  play  01 
read,  when  they  ought  to  be  at  work,"  continued  his 
father.  "  All  study  and  no  work  is  'most  as  bad  as  al] 
work  and  no  study." 

"  Only  a  minute,  and  I'll  go,"  added  Abraham,  so 
absorbed  in  his  book  that  he  scarcely  knew  what  answet 
he  made. 


$6         PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  It  must  be  a  short  minute,"  retorted  his  father  in 
a  tone  of  injured  authority. 

"  I'll  work  hard  enough  to  make  it  up  when  I  get  at 
it,"  said  Abraham,  still  delaying. 

"  I  don't  know  about  that.  I'm  afraid  that  your 
thoughts  will  be  somewhere  else ;  so  put  down  the  book 
and  come  on." 

With  evident  reluctance  the  young  reader  laid  down 
his  book,  preliminary  to  obeying  orders. 

"Good  boys  obey  at  once,"  continued  his  father; 
"don't  have  to  drive  'em  like  cattle." 

"  I  only  wanted  to  read  a  minute  longer,"  answered 
Abraham,  by  way  of  palliating  his  offence. 

"And  I  only  wanted  you  shouldn't,"  exclaimed  his 
father  angrily.  "  I  know  what  is  best  for  you.  I'm 
willing  you  should  read  and  write,  but  you  must  work 
when  work  drives." 

It  was  altogether  new  for  Abraham  to  exhibit  so  much 
disobedience  as  he  did  after  he  became  enthusiastic 
over  The  Pilgrim's  Progress  and  ^Esop's  Fables.  Nor 
was  he  conscious  of  possessing  a  disobedient  spirit ; 
for  no  such  spirit  was  in  his  heart.  He  was  simply 
infatuated  with  the  new  books. 

We  must  not  conceal  the  fact  that  his  father  had 
been  somewhat  annoyed  by  the  boy's  method  of  im- 
proving his  penmanship  by  writing  with  chalk  or  a 
charred  stick  upon  almost  any  surface  that  came  in 
nis  way.  But  for  his  paternal  pride  over  this  ac- 
quisition of  his  boy,  he  might  have  checked  him  in 
this  singular  way  of  improvement.  One  incident  oc- 
curred *hat  served  to  reconcile  his  father  in  the  main 
to  his  scowls  here  and  there,  although  he  may  have 


BRIGHTER  HOURS.  97 

thought  still  that  Abraham  was  carrying  the  matter 
too  far. 

An  acquaintance  came  into  the  field  where  father 
and  son  were  at  work,  when  his  eye  was  arrested  by 
letters  cut  in  the  mellow  soil. 

"What's  that?"  he  inquired. 

Abraham  smiled,  and  let  his  father  answer. 

"What's  what?" 

"Why,  this  writing, —it  looks  as  if  somebody  had 
been  writing  on  the  ground." 

"Abe's  work,  I  s'pose." 

"Abe  didn't  do  that !  "  answered  the  neighbor. 

"I  did  do  it  with  a  stick,"  said  the  boy. 

"What  is  it?"     The  man  couldn't  read. 

"It's  my  name." 

"Your  name,  hey?     Likely  story." 

"Well,  'tis,  whether  you  believe  it  or  not;"  and 
he  proceeded  to  spell  it  out,  —  "  A-b-r-a-h-a-m 
L-i-n-c-o-l-n." 

"  Sure  enough,  it  is  ;  and  you  certainly  did  it,  Abe  ? " 

"  Yes,  sir ;  and  I  will  do  it  again,  if  you  want  to  see 
me;"  and,  without  waiting  for  an  answer,  he  caught 
up  a  stick,  and  wrote  his  name  again  in  the  dirt. 

"There  'tis,"  said  Abraham. 

"I  see  it,  and  it's  well  done,"  answered  the  neigh 
bor. 

And  there,  on  the  soil  of  Indiana,  Abraham  Lincoln 
wrote  his  name,  with  a  stick,  in  large  characters,  —  a 
sort  of  prophetic  act,  that  students  of  history  may  love 
to  ponder.  For,  since  that  day,  he  has  written  his 
name,  by  public  acts,  on  the  annals  of  every  State  in 
the  Union. 


g$  PIONEER  HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 


From  the  time,  however,  that  Abraham  became  ab- 
sorbed in  The  Pilgrim's  Progress  and  ^Esop's  Fables, 
he  was  subject  to  the  charge  of  being  "lazy."  The 
charge  gained  force,  too,  as  he  grew  older,  and  more 
books  and  increasing  thirst  for  knowledge  controlled 
him.  Dennis  Hanks  said  :  "  Abe  was  lazy,  very  lazy. 
He  was  always  reading,  scribbling,  ciphering,  writing 
poetry,  and  such  like/'  John  Romine  declared  that 
"  Abe  was  awful  lazy.  He  worked  for  me ;  was  always 
reading  and  thinking ;  I  used  to  get  mad  at  him.  He 
worked  for  me  pulling  fodder.  I  say  Abe  was  awful 
lazy.  He  would  laugh  and  talk,  and  crack  jokes,  and 
tell  stories  all  the  time  ;  didn't  love  work,  but  did  dearly 
love  his  pay.  He  worked  for  me  frequently,  a  few  days 
only  at  a  time.  He  said  to  me  one  day,  that  his  father 
taught  him  to  work,  but  never  learned  him  to  love  it." 

Mrs.  Crawford,  for  whose  husband  Abraham  worked, 
and  in  whose  cabin  he  read  and  told  stories,  said  :  "  Abe 
was  no  hand  to  pitch  into  work  like  killing  snakes." 
At  the  same  time,  Mr.  Crawford  could  find  no  man  to 
suit  him  as  well  as  Abraham,  when  the  latter  was  but 
fifteen  years  of  age. 

We  protest,  here  and  now,  against  this  charge  of 
laziness  which  some  biographers  have  made  so  promi- 
nent. Nothing  was  ever  more  common  than  to  charge 
studious  boys  and  girls  with  laziness.  A  great  many 
men  and  women,  who  know  no  better,  bring  the  same 
charge  against  professional  gentlemen.  Any  person 
who  is  not  obliged  to  work  on  the  farm,  or  at  the  forge, 
or  engage  in  some  other  manual  labor,  for  a  livelihood, 
they  pronounce  lazy  and  aristocratic.  Through  sheer 
ignorance,   studying   and   literary  aspirations   are  re 


BRIGHTER  HOURS.  99 


garded  as  proof  of  laziness.  It  was  so  in  Abraham's 
time.  Because  he  possessed  talents  that  craved  knowl- 
edge as  the  appetite  craves  food,  leading  him  to  snatch 
fragments  of  time  for  reading,  and  perhaps  to  devote 
hours  to  the  bewitching  pastime  that  ought  to  have 
been  given  to  hard  work,  careless,  ignorant  observ- 
ers called  him  "lazy."  It  is  a  base  slander.  There 
was  not  a  lazy  bone  in  him.  The  boy  who  will  improve 
such  bits  of  time  as  he  can  save  from  his  daily  toil  for 
study,  and  sit  up  nights  to  read  the  Life  of  Washington, 
or  master  a  problem  in  mathematics,  is  not  lazy.  He 
may  love  a  book  more  than  he  loves  chopping  or  thresh- 
ing, just  as  another  may  love  the  latter  more  than  he 
does  the  former ;  but  he  is  not  lazy.  Laziness  wastes 
the  spare  hours  of  the  day  in  bringing  nothing  to  pass, 
and  gives  the  night  to  sleep  instead  of  mental  improve- 
ment. As  many  of  the  busiest  and  most  cheerful 
workers  in  our  country  are  its  scholars,  without  a  par- 
ticle of  the  element  of  laziness  in  their  composition,  so 
many  of  the  most  industrious  and  noble  boys  are  those 
who  prefer  a  book  to  the  plow,  and  would  rather  go  to 
school  than  to  harvesting.  That  was  true  of  Abraham 
Lincoln.  His  heart  was  set  on  books ;  but  his  hands 
were  so  ready  for  hard  work,  that  any  farmer  was  glad  to 
hire  him  at  the  age  of  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age, 
because  he  would  do  more  work  than  any  youth  of  his 
age.  He  would  chop  more  wood  in  a  day,  lift  larger 
logs,  and  "pull  more  fodder,"  boy  as  he  was,  than  half 
the  men  who  hired  him. 

True,  from  the  time  that  John  Baldwin,  the  black- 
smith, came  into  the  neighborhood,  when  Abraham 
was  about  ten  years  old,  he  would  steal  away  to  the 


IOO       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

smithy's  shop  to  listen  to  his  stories.  John  was  a  great 
story-teller,  and  he  was  fond  of  children  also,  and  these 
were  attractions  enough  for  such  a  precocious  ooy. 
His  mind  yearned  for  thoughts  ;  it  was  desperate  for 
entertainment ;  and  the  blacksmith's  stories,  and  inci- 
dents of  his  life,  supplied  both  thoughts  and  entertain^ 
ment.  He  spent  much  time  with  this  jolly  son  of  Vul- 
can before  he  began  to  tell  stories  himself,  and,  after 
that,  he  exchanged  them  with  the  smutty  toiler  at  the 
forge.  But  there  was  no  evidence  of  laziness  in  those 
visits  to  the  blacksmith's  shop.  And  when  we  place 
this  freak  of  a  singularly  bright  boy,  together  with  all 
his  other  acts  that  denoted  laziness  to  the  ignorant 
pioneers,  beside  the  fact,  that  in  manhood,  to  the  day 
of  his  death,  Abraham  Lincoln  was  one  of  the  hardest 
workers  who  ever  lived,  both  at  manual  and  intellectual 
labor,  ignoring  all  ten  hour  systems,  and  toiling  fifteen, 
sixteen,  and  even  eighteen  hours  a  day,  to  satisfy  his 
honorable  ambition,  the  charge  of  laziness  is  branded  as 
slander  on  the  part  of  those  who  make  it.  "  The  boy 
is  father  to  the  man,"  —  the  lazy  boy  makes  the  lazy 
man,  and  vice  versa.  If  Abraham  was  a  lazy  boy,  his 
manhood  completely  belied  his  youth,  and  the  old 
maxim  is  exploded. 

We  have  seen  that  they  who  called  him  lazy 
coupled  the  charge  with  the  statement  that  he  was 
always  "  reading  and  thinking,"  evidently  considering 
that  his  love  of  books  was  proof  of  a  disposition  to 
shirk  labor.  Their  ignorance  is  the  explanation  of, 
and  excuse  for,  their  charge. 

We  have  made  this  digression,  at  this  point,  in 
order  to  direct  the  attention  of  the  reader  to  an  lmpor- 


BRIGHTER  HOURS.  IOI 

tant  element  of  Lincoln's  character,  that  will  find 
ample  support  in  the  sequel. 

Now  that  we  are  speaking  of  Abraham's  books,  we 
may  record  the  facts  about  two  other  volumes,  that 
came  into  his  hands  within  two  years  after  ^Esop's 
Fables.  They  were  Ramsay's  Life  of  Washington 
and  Robinson  Crusoe. 

Dennis  Hanks  came  home  one  day  and  said  to 
Abraham,  — 

"  Don't  you  want  to  read  the  life  of  Washington  ?" 

"  Of  course  I  do,"  was  his  reply.  "  What  do  you 
ask  me  that  for  ?" 

"  Because  I've  seen  one." 

"  Where  ? " 

"  Down  at  Anderson's  Creek." 

"  Whom  did  it  belong  to  ? " 

Dennis  told  him,  adding,  "  He  offered  to  lend  it  to 
me." 

"  Then  /  can  borrow  it  ?  " 

"Any  time  you  are  there;  there's  no  doubt  of  it." 

Without  recording  the  details  of  this  affair,  it  will 
answer  our  purpose  to  say  that  Abraham  embraced 
the  first  opportunity  to  secure  the  loan  of  that  valu- 
able biography.  He  knew  that  Washington  was 
called  the  "  father  of  his  country" — that  he  was 
commander  in-chief  of  the  army  in  the  American 
Revolution.  He  had  been  told,  also,  of  the  part  his 
grandfather  took  in  the  "  war  of  independence/' 
This  was  all  he  knew  of  the  illustrious  statesman 
whose  life  he  purposed  to  read ;  but  this  was  quite 
ciii/ugh  to  awaken  his  enthusiasm  over  the  volume. 
It  was  read  and  re-read  with  the  deepest  interest,  and 


102        PIONEER  HOME    SO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

its  contents  discussed  with  his  father  and  Dennis,  both 
of  whom  learned  more  kbout  Washington  and  his 
times  from  Abraham  than  they  ever  knew  before. 

It  is  not  known  how  he  came  into  possession  of 
Robinson  Crusoe.  Doubtless  the  book  was  borrowed  , 
and  it  proved  a  source  of  genuine  satisfaction  to 
him.  Once  reading  it  only  created  the  desire  to  read 
it  a  second  time,  and  even  a  third  time.  There  was  a 
kind  of  witchery  about  the  book  to  his  active  mind, 
different  from  that  exerted  over  him  even  by  The  Pil- 
grim's Progress.  He  could  scarcely  command  language 
to  express  his  admiration  of  the  volume. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

A  NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS. 

IR.  LINCOLN  remained  a  widower  until 
December,  1819.  During  this  time  his 
only  housekeeper  was  his  daughter  Sarah. 
Abraham  was  a  "  handy  boy "  about  the 
cabin,  and  often  rendered  timely  aid  to  his  sister  in 
her  daily  work.  He  became  so  expert  in  household 
matters,  that,  a  few  years  later,  when  he  "  worked 
out "  among  the  farmers,  their  wives  pronounced  him 
the  "best  hand"  because  he  was  so  "handy,"  and  was 
willing  to  make  fires,  bring  wood  and  water,  or  tend 
the  baby.  It  was  evidently  a  good  school  for  him, 
since  his  manhood  was  characterized  by  being  "  handy 
about  the  house."  A  dweller  in  Springfield,  Illinois, 
where  Abraham  commenced  his  public  life,  in  1837 
remembers  how  he  "  used  to  draw  the  baby  back  and 
forth  in  front  of  his  house,  early  in  the  summer  morn- 
ing, while  his  wife  was  getting  breakfast,  at  the  same 
time  reading  a  book  that  he  held  in  one  hand." 

But  Thomas  Lincoln  needed  a  wife,  and  his  son 
needed  a  mother.  Household  affairs  had  been  left 
''at  loose  ends,"  as  they  are  likely  to  be  where  there 
is   no   mother   to  superintend.     There  was  not  that 


104       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

neatness  and  order  necessary  to  make  even  a  cabin 
home  attractive ;  and  what  clothes  the  children  had 
were  in  a  very  dilapidated  condition.  It  was  both 
wise  and  necessary  for  Lincoln  to  go  in  search  of  a 
wife. 

He  remembered  Sally  Bush,  of  Elizabethtown, 
Kentucky,  to  whom  he  once  proposed,  but  who  pre- 
ferred another,  one  Johnson  by  name.  She  married 
the  latter  instead  of  Lincoln.  Her  husband  died  three 
years  before  Mrs.  Lincoln  did,  and  Thomas  Lincoln 
knew  that  she  was  a  widow.  Where  would  he  be  so 
much  inclined  to  go  as  there  for  a  good  wife  ?  Where 
could  he  go  with  more  hope  of  success  ? 

Lincoln  posted  away  to  Kentucky,  found  Widow 
Johnson,  proposed,  and  was  accepted.  On  the  fol 
lowing  day  they  were  married.  Mrs.  Johnson  pos 
sessed  a  good  supply  of  furniture  for  that  day,  so 
much  as  to  require  a  four-horse  team  to  remove  it  to 
Indiana.  She  owned  a  bureau  that  cost  forty  dollars, 
a  clothes-chest,  table  and  six  chairs,  together  with  a  quan- 
tity of  bedding,  crockery,  tin-ware  and  iron-ware.  Ralph 
Browne,  Mr.  Lincoln's  cousin,  removed  both  good*; 
and  bride,  with  her  three  children  —  John,  Sarah  and 
Matilda  —  to  Indiana.  With  this  rather  large  acces- 
sion for  one  match,  Thomas  Lincoln  numbered  eight 
souls  in  his  household  —  all  to  dwell  in  a  cabin  with  a 
single  room  and  loft.  Still,  it  was,  on  the  whole,  as 
the  sequel  will  show,  the  best  bargain  that  Thomas 
Lincoln  ever  made. 

Abraham  was  filled  with  wonder  on  the  arrival  of 
his  new  mother  and  her  goods.  Such  a  quantity  of 
"household  stuff"  his  eyes  never  beheld  before;  and 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS,  105 

he  could  scarcely  believe  that  his  home  would  boast, 
henceforth,  a  "  bureau,  clothes-chest  and  real  chairs.'* 
His  stepmother,  too,  won  his  heart  at  once.  He 
thought  she  was  just  the  woman  to  own  such  a 
bureau  —  the  latter  was  a  fitting  accompaniment  to 
the  former. 

The  second  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  better  educated  than 
the  first.  She  could  not  only  read  and  write,  but  she 
was  reared  in  girlhood  under  more  favorable  circum- 
stances than  Nancy  Hanks.  In  her  teens  she  was 
rather  the  belle  of  the  town,  or,  at  least,  she  was  one 
of  them.  One  person  said,  "she  was  the  best  and 
proudest  of  the  Bushes.' '  She  dressed  better,  was 
more  tidy  and  brighter  than  most  of  the  girls  around 
her.  The  girl  was  mother  to  the  woman,  so  that 
Thomas  Lincoln  found  he  had  a  wife  in  her  who  was 
ambitious  for  personal  appearance  and  comfort.  One 
of  the  first  things  she  set  her  husband  about,  after 
settling  in  Indiana,  was  to  make  a  floor  to  the  cabin. 
Then  she  posted  him  away  to  the  only  place  where  he 
could  buy  window-sashes  and  doors,  twenty  or  thirty 
miles  distant,  for  these  indispensable  articles.  When 
the  Lincoln  cabin  had  a  floor,  a  real  door  and  real 
windows,  and  was  furnished  with  a  veritable  bed, 
bureau,  chairs,  crockery,  etc.,  it  presented  quite  a 
respectable  appearance.  It  was  certainly  a  much 
neater,  more  orderly  and  attractive  abode  than  it  ever 
was  before.  The  change  which  Mrs.  Lincoln  wrought 
in  the  habitation,  in  a  very  short  time,  was  indicative 
of  a  smart,  enterprising  woman,  possessing  much  ex- 
ecutive ability. 

It  was  a  glorious  day  for  Abraham  when  a  faithful 


106       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

— _ — _ — , , 

and  intelligent  stepmother  was  installed  over  his  dreary 
home.  Her  advent  brought  such  cheerfulness  to  him 
as  he  had  not  known  since  his  own  mother  was  laid  in 
her  grave.  He  gave  her  a  hearty  welcome,  and  a  large 
place  in  his  heart.  Her  son  and  daughters,  too,  he 
received  as  a  true  brother.  They  were  better  clad  than 
himself  and  more  tidy;  but  soon,  under  his  good  step 
mother's  care,  he  was  made  as  neat  and  prim  as  they. 
The  two  families  of  children  became  as  one  family  soon, 
and  no  discord  ever  rose  among  them.  Abraham 
became  strongly  attached  to  the  two  Johnson  girls, 
who  were  bright  and  social ;  and  they  came  to  regard 
him,  not  only  as  a  brother,  but  also  as  a  prodigy.  Their 
coming  lifted  Abraham  into  a  higher  plane  of  social  life. 
Dennis  Hanks,  who  was  a  member  of  the  family  at 
the  time,  says,  "  In  a  few  weeks  all  had  changed  ;  and 
where  everything  was  wanting,  now  all  was  snug  and 
comfortable.  She  was  a  woman  of  great  energy,  of 
remarkable  good  sense,  very  industrious  and  saving, 
and  also  very  neat  and  tidy  in  her  habits,  and  knew 
exactly  how  to  manage  children.  She  took  an  especial 
liking  to  young  Abe.  Her  love  for  him  was  warmly 
returned,  and  continued  to  the  day  of  his  death.  But 
few  children  loved  their  parents  as  he  loved  his  step 
mother.  He  was  encouraged  by  her  to  study,  and  any 
wish  on  his  part  was  gratified  when  it  could  be  done. 
The  two  sets  of  children  got  along  finely  together  as 
if  they  had  been  children  of  the  same  parents.  Mrs. 
Lincoln  soon  discovered  that  Abraham  was  a  boy  of 
uncommon  natural  talents,  and  that,  if  rightly  trained, 
a  bright  future  was  before  him,  and  she  did  all  in  hel 
power  to  develop  those  talents." 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND  SCHOOLS.  107 

We  may  add,  here,  once  for  all,  that  Dennis  Hanks 
subsequently  married  one  of  the  Johnson  girls,  and 
Allen  Hall,  another  cousin  of  Abraham,  the  other.  A 
granddaughter  of  Dennis  Hanks,  Mrs.  H.  A.  Chap- 
man, says  of  Mrs.  Lincoln,  "  My  grandmother  was  a 
uery  tall  woman,  straight  as  an  arrow,  fair  complexion, 
and  was,  as  I  first  remember  her,  very  handsome, 
sprightly,  talkative,  and  proud  ;  wore  her  hair  curled 
till  gray;  was  kind-hearted,  and  very  charitable,  and 
also  very  industrious." 

A  new  mother  was  not  the  only  boon  that  Abraham 
received  in  that  winter  of  1819-20.  For  the  first  time 
in  Indiana  a  school  opened  for  him. 

"  I  hear  that  a  man  by  the  name  of  Dorsey  is  going 
to  keep  school,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln  to  his  son;  "and 
you  can  go,  and  the  other  children  too."  He  learned 
the  news  of  a  neighbor  whom  he  met  on  that  day. 

"  Who  is  Dorsey  ?"  inquired  Abraham. 

"I  don't  know,  only  he  is  a  man  who  is  going  to 
keep  school  down  by  Little  Pigeon  Creek;  and  he's 
good  in  reading,  waiting,  and  ciphering." 

"A  good  chance  for  you,  Abe,"  remarked  his  step- 
mother, whom  we  shall  know  hereafter  only  as  mother. 
"You  want  to  know  something  about  arithmetic  as  soon 
as  you  can  ;  the  sooner  the  better." 

"Where  shall  I  get  an  arithmetic  to  study?" 

"  As  to  that,  I  can  find  one  somewhere,"  replied  his 
father.  "I  shall  go  to  market  before  the  week  is  out, 
and  I  will  see  what  I  can  find  among  the  settlers  there 
on  the  way.     You  must  study  arithmetic  somehow." 

"A  good  day  for  you,  Abe,  when  you  learn  to 
cipher,"  added  his  mother.     "  Even  a  poor  chance  to 


I08        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

learn  that  is  better  than  none.  Two  miles  will  be 
just  far  enough  for  you  to  walk  to  keep  your  legs 
limber." 

Settlers  had  come  into  that  region  rapidly,  and  had 
put  up  a  log-house,  two  miles  from  Lincoln's,  to  serve 
as  a  schoolhouse  whenever  an  occasion  might  arise.  It 
was  a  poor  affair.  Dorsey  could  just  stand  up  under 
the  roof,  and  he  was  no  taller  than  Abraham.  It  had 
"  holes  for  windows,"  in  which  greased  paper  was  used 
instead  of  glass.  A  large  fire-place,  that  would  admit 
logs  four  feet  in  length,  was  the  only  cheerful  object 
within  ;  and  the  boys  appeared  to  think  so  ;  for  they 
piled  on  the  fuel  by  the  half  cord,  and  made  the  biggest 
blaze  possible. 

To  this  pioneer  school  Abraham  went  with  a  glad 
heart.  His  father  found  an  old  arithmetic  somewhere, 
in  a  damaged  condition,  and  he  bought  it  for  him.  His 
mother  made  him  a  new  suit  of  clothes,  for  his  old  suit 
was  much  the  worse  for  wear.  It  was  not  made  of 
broadcloth  or  cassimere  ;  but  of  such  material  as  could 
be  obtained.  It  consisted  of  a  linsey-woolsey  shirt, 
buckskin  breeches,  low  shoes  made  of  leather  tanned 
in  the  family,  and  a  cap  of  coon-skin.  Overcoats 
were  unknown. 

Here  Abraham  became  particularly  interested  in 
arithmetic  and  "  spelling  for  places."  In  reading  and 
writing,  he  was  fully  equal  to  his  teacher,  and,  also  in 
spelling.  But  he  never  spelled  in  classes  before  for 
places,  an  exercise  which  the  boys  christened  with  the 
name,  " trapping  up  and  down."  Abraham  always 
u  trapped  up,"  so  his  contestants  said.  He  never 
missed  a  word,  and  was  always  found  at  the  head  of  his 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND  SCHOOLS.  log 

class,  except  when  he  took  his  place  at  the  foot,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom,  to  "trap  up"  again. 

This  school  continued  but  a  few  weeks ;  and,  as 
Abraham  never  had  but  two  more  opportunities  to 
attend  school,  we  shall  devote  the  remainder  of  this 
chapter  to  the  details  of  his  experience. 

Four  years  later  —  in  1823  —  one  Andrew  Craw- 
ford, who  lived  in  Spencer  County,  opened  a  school  in 
the  same  log-house  in  which  Dorsey  taught.  He  was 
much  better  educated  than  any  of  Abraham's  previous 
teachers.  He  was  first-class  for  that  day  and  place. 
He  was  a  master,  too,  with  whom  boys  could  not 
trifle.     He  was  "  great  on  thrashing"  one  boy  said. 

Abraham  attended  this  school,  and  became  more 
enthusiastic  than  ever  over  his  studies.  He  had 
found  a  more  congenial  teacher;  and  Crawford  ap- 
peared to  understand  him  thoroughly,  and  to  know 
how  to  lead  him.  Teacher  and  pupil  were  never  on 
better  terms  than  were  Crawford  and  Abraham. 
Crawford  saw  in  the  lad  the  foreshadowing  of  a  great 
man.  He  had  no  doubt  of  it,  and  he  did  not  hesitate 
to  express  his  admiration  of  the  boy.  He  said  to  Mr. 
Lincoln  one  day  : 

"  Abe  is  a  wonderful  boy  —  the  best  scholar  I  ever 
had.  He's  never  satisfied  without  knowing  all  about 
his  lessons.  He  wants  to  know  every  thing  that 
anybody  else  knows,  and  he  don't  see  why  he 
can't." 

"  That's  Abe  exactly,"  responded  Mr.  Lincoln. 
"  He  cares  more  for  a  book  than  anything  else.  I 
sometimes  wish  he  liked  work  as  much  as  he  does  a 
book." 


HO       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Wj?  couldn't  like  both  equally  well/'  continued 
Crawford;  "that's  impossible.  If  he  liked  work  with 
all  his  soul,  he  would  not  be  so  great  a  scholar- — he 
could  not  be  such  a  scholar." 

"May  be  ;  but  work  is  more  necessary  to  backwoods 
life  than  books,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln,  who  failed  to  look 
into  the  future  as  Mr.  Crawford  did.  "  Pioneers  ought 
to  know  more  than  I  do,  but  they  needn't  know  every 
:hing." 

"  But  Abe  will  not  live  in  the  backwoods  all  his 
days.  Even  if  he  should  continue  to  live  in  Spencer 
County,  he  will  not  be  a  backwoodsman  long.  As 
immigration  is  going  on  now,  by  the  time  he  is  thirty 
years  old  he  will  be  out  of  pioneer  life.  But  such  a 
boy  will  rise  above  such  a  life.  His  ability  and  perse- 
verance will  overcome  obstacles,  and  he  will  make  his 
mark.     Abe  is  as  good,  too,  as  he  is  bright." 

"Yes;  Abe's  a  good  boy,"  responded  his  father. 
"We  can't  expect  boys  will  do  right  always,  you  know  ; 
but  Abe's  good  to  mind.  His  mother  thinks  there 
never  was  such  a  boy."  And  this  last  testimony  was 
a  confirmation  of  what  we  have  said  of  his  filial  love 
and  obedience. 

"  I  was  struck  with  his  honesty  the  other  day," 
added  Mr.  Crawford.  "  I  saw  that  a  buck's  horn  that 
was  nailed  on  the  schoolhouse  was  broken  off,  and  I 
concluded  that  some  of  the  boys  did  it.  So  I  asked 
them  the  next  day,  when  they  had  all  got  still,  which 
of  them  broke  it,  and  Abe  answered  promptly,  '1 
did  it.'  " 

"Just  like  him,"  said  his  father. 

"  '  I  said,  how  happened  that,  Abe  ? '  n 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND  SCHOOLS.  Ill 

"I  didn't  mean  to  do  it,"  he  replied.  " I  hung  on 
it,  and  it  broke.  I  wouldn't  have  done  it  if  I  had 
thought  it  would  breaK." 

"  I  dare  say  he  spoke  the  truth,"  said  his  father. 

"  I  have  no  doubt  of  it ;  but  few  boys  would  own 
up  like  that.  Most  boys  would  try  to  conceal  what 
they  had  done,  and  wouldn't  own  it  till  they  were 
obliged  to." 

"  That's  so  ;  and  I've  thought  that  it  might  be  owing 
a  little  to  the  Life  of  Washington  that  he  read  some 
time  ago.  He  seemed  to  think  a  sight  of  his  owning 
up  that  he  cut  the  cherry  tree  with  his  new  hatchet ; 
and  he  spoke  of  it  ever  so  many  times." 

"Well,  this  was  certainly  like  that,"  said  Mr.  Craw- 
ford ;  "  and  I  took  occasion  to  say  that  it  was  a  noble 
trait  to  confess  a  wrong  that  was  done,  instead  of  try- 
ing to  conceal  it." 

"He  never  was  disposed  to  conceal  his  wrong- 
doings. He  takes  all  the  blame  to  himself,  and  don't 
try  to  put  it  on  to  anybody  else." 

"  t  should  think  so  ;  and  such  truthfulness  is  worthy 
oi  all  praise,"  said  Mr.  Crawford. 

Na'i  Grigsby  attended  Crawford's  school,  and  he 
s^ys  :  "  Essays  and  poetry  were  not  taught  in  this 
school,  but  Abe  took  them  up  on  his  own  account.  He 
first  wrote  short  sentences  on  'cruelty  to  animals,'  and 
finally  came  out  with  a  regular  composition  on  the 
subject.  He  was  very  much  annoyed  and  pained  by 
the  conduct  of  the  boys,  who  were  in  the  habit  of 
catching  terrapins  and  putting  coals  of  fire  on  their 
backs.  He  would  chide  us,  tell  us  it  was  wrong,  and 
would  write  against  it." 


112        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

This  statement  shows  that  Abraham's  teacher  en« 
couraged  him  in  just  those  exercises  that  contributed 
to  his  rapid  mental  growth.  Evidently  he  understood 
the  boy,  as  we  have  said,  and  gave  him  an  impulse, 
onward  and  upward,  that  he  never  ceased  to  feel 
Here  he  first  attempted  the  role  of  poet,  as  well  as 
essayist ;  and,  also,  played  the  part  of  orator.  He  pos- 
sessed a  remarkable  memory,  and  could  repeat  long 
paragraphs  from  the  books  he  had  read  and  the  ser- 
mons he  had  heard.  He  was  wont  to  recite  these  for 
the  amusement  of  his  companions  ;  and,  one  day,  he 
was  displaying  his  oratorical  powers  upon  a  stump, 
when  one  of  the  boys  threw  a  terrapin  against  a  tree 
near  the  speaker,  crushing  the  poor  animal  so  cruelly 
that  he  writhed  upon  the  ground,  exciting  the  tender 
sympathies  of  Abraham,  and  causing  him  to  strike  out 
upon  an  oration  or  sermon  (whatever  we  may  call  it) 
Against  cruelty  to  animals,  denouncing  the  act  as  in- 
human, and  holding  up  the  boy  who  did  it  to  scorn 
/mtil  he  writhed  under  the  scorching  rebuke  well  nigh 
as  much  as  the  terrapin  did  through  his  thoughtless 
act. 

At  another  time  he  became  the  counsel  for  a  ter 
rapin  on  whose  back  the  boys  were  putting  coals  of 
fire. 

"  Don't,"  exclaimed  Abraham,  as  if  he  felt  the  burn- 
ing coals  upon  his  own  back. 

"  Don't  what  ?  "  responded  a  boy,  at  the  same  time 
giving  the  terrapin  a  punch  with  a  stick. 

"  Don't  be  so  cruel,"  continued  Abraham;  "ho*; 
would  you  like  to  have  coals  put  on  your  own  back  ?  M 

"  Try  it,  and  see,"  shouted  one. 


A    NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS,  113 

"Well,  it  is  cruel  to  treat  him  so — and  mean,  too," 
persisted  Abraham. 

"Why,  Abe,  it's  nothin'  but  a  terrapin,"  interjected 
a  boy. 

"  Don't  terrapins  have  feelings  ? "  responded  our  hero 

"I  don't  know  whether  they  do  or  not,"  replied  the 
first  named  boy,  at  the  same  time  adding  another  coal 
of  fire  to  the  animal's  back. 

"  You  shan't  do  it,  Nat,  unless  you  are  stronger  than 
I  am,"  exclaimed  Abraham,  knocking  the  last  coal  from 
the  animal's  back,  and  pushing  the  boy  with  the  stick 
aside. 

"You're  a  chicken-hearted  feller,  Abe,  as  ever  lived," 
continued  Nat.  "  I  should  think  the  terrapin  was  your 
brother." 

"  Whether  he  is  or  not,  you  won't  burn  him  any  more 
while  I'm  'round." 

"  That's  it,"  said  Dave  Turnham,  who  stood  looking 
on.     "I  go  in  for  Abe.     He  wouldn't  hurt  a  fly." 

"  He  would  if  he  trod  on  it,"  retorted  Nat,  aiming  to 
be  funny. 

Mr.  Crawford  had  witnessed  a  part  of  this  scene, 
and  he  came  out  at  this  stage  of  the  affair,  and  re- 
buked the  cruelty  of  the  boys  who  were  torturing  the 
terrapin,  while  he  commended  Abraham  for  his  ten^ 
derness. 

"  We  are  coming  to  the  Rule  of  Three  now,"  said 
Mr.  Crawford  to  Abraham,  "  and  that  will  be  all  you 
can  learn  of  me." 

"Is  it  hard  ? "  asked  the  boy 

"  It  won't  be  for  you.  I  think  you  can  get  through 
it  by  the  time  your  father  wants  you  this  spring." 


1 14       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"Why  is  it  called  the  Rule  of  Three?" 

"I  hardly  know.  Some  call  it  Simple  Proportion, 
and  that  is  the  true  name  for  it.  You  will  see  a  reason 
for  it,  too,  when  you  come  to  master  it." 

"What  if  I  don't  master  it  ?  " 

"I  '11  risk  you  on  that.  It  won't  be  of  so  much  use 
to  you  as  what  you  have  been  over  already.  Some 
people  don't  study  it." 

"  My  father  never  studied  arithmetic,"  said  Abraham. 

"  Nor  mine.  Not  half  the  folks  about  here  have 
studied  it." 

"  Father  never  had  a  chance  to  study  it  when  he  was 
a  boy." 

"That's  the  case  with  a  good  many." 

"  Well,  I  can  cipher  now  in  Addition,  Subtraction, 
Multiplication,  and  Division." 

"Yes,  you  understand  these  rules  well,  and  you  wil 
always  find  use  for  them." 

Encouraged  by  his  instructor,  Abraham  grappled 
with  the  so-called  "Rule  of  Three."  It  was  some- 
what more  difficult  for  him  to  comprehend  this  rule 
than  it  was  the  previous  ones  ;  yet  he  was  not  discour- 
aged. His  discriminating  mind  and  patient  labor  did 
the  work  for  him,  and  he  enjoyed  the  happiness  of  un- 
derstanding Proportion  by  the  time  his  school-drys 
were  over.  We  do  not  mean  that  he  comprehended  A 
fully,  so  as  to  be  complete  master  of  it,  but  he  under- 
stood it,  as  we  are  wont  to  say  that  pupils  understand 
the  rules  they  have  been  over  at  school.  At  least-  he 
made  such  progress  that  he  was  prepared  to  become 
master  of  all  the  rules  he  had  studied,  by  devoting  his 
leisure  moments  to  them  thereafter. 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS.  115 

We  must  stop  here  to  relate  another  incident  of 
those  school-days,  because  it  illustrates  a  trait  of  char- 
acter for  which  Abraham  was  well  known  in  his  youth. 
We  often  find  the  key  to  a  boy's  character  by  observing 
his  intercourse  with  companions  at  school. 

It  was  near  the  end  of  his  term  of  school  at  Craw- 
ford's. Several  boys  were  on  their  way  home  at  the 
close  of  school  in  company  with  Abraham,  when  a 
difficulty  arose  between  two  of  them  about  spelling  a 
word. 

"You  didn't  spell  it  right,,,  said  John. 

"Yes,  I  did  spell  it  right,"  replied  Daniel.  "I  spelt 
it  just  as  Mr.  Crawford  did." 

"He  said  you  didn't  spell  it  so." 

"I  know  he  said  so,  but  he  didn't  understand  me.  I 
spelt  it  just  as  he  did." 

"I  know  you  didn't,"  continued  John. 

"And  I  know  I  did,"  retorted  Daniel.  "You  are  a 
liar,  if  you  say  so." 

"  Don't  call  me  a  liar  !  "  exclaimed  John,  doubling  up 
his  fist.     "You'll  get  it,  if  you  say  that  again  !" 

"I  stump  you  to  do  it,  old  madpiece ! "  said  Daniel, 
putting  himself  in  an  attitude  of  defiance. 

"Come,  Dan,  don't,"  said  Abraham,  throwing  one  ox 
his  arms  over  his  neck. 

'"  Let  him  come,  if  he  wants  to,"  said  John,  in  a  great 
rage  ;  "I'll  give  it  to  him  :  he's  a  great  coward." 

"What's  the  use,  John?"  interrupted  Abraham, 
throwing  his  other  arm  around  John's  shoulders,  so 
as  to  bring  himself  between  the  two  wrathy  boys  ; 
"that  ain't  worth  fighting  about." 

"Yes,  it  is,  too,"  answered  John.     "You  wouldn't 


116       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

be  called  a  liar  by  anybody  I  know,  and  I  won't 
neither."  Abraham  was  now  walking  along  between 
the  two  boys,  with  his  arms  over  their  shoulders. 

"Yes,  I  would,  too;  and  I  shouldn't  care  neither,  if 
it  wasn't  true." 

"Nobody  would  think  of  calling  you  a  liar,"  added 
John. 

"They  wouldn't  call  you  so,  if  you  didn't  care  any- 
thing about  it,"  answered  Abraham  ;  and  there  was 
much  truth  in  the  remark. 

By  this  time  the  two  combatants  had  cooled  off  con- 
siderably, and  Daniel  put  out  the  last  spark  of  fire  by 
adding,  "I'll  take  it  back,  John." 

"That's  a  good  fellow,"  said  Abraham,  while  John 
was  mute.  Five  minutes  thereafter  the  two  vexed 
boys  were  on  good  terms,  their  difficulties  having  been 
adjusted  by  Abraham,  "the  peace-maker,"  as  he  was 
often  called.  He  could  not  endure  to  see  broils  among 
his  companions,  and  he  often  taxed  all  his  kind  feelings 
and  ingenuity  to  settle  them.  This  trait  of  character 
was  prominent  through  all  his  life.  Last,  though  not 
least,  we  had  an  exhibition  of  it,  when,  at  the  outbreak 
of  the  Rebellion  in  1861,  he  put  his  arms  around  the 
neck  of  both  North  and  South,  and  attempted  to  recon- 
cile them.  But  his  effort  proved  less  successful  than 
it  did  in  the  case  of  John  and  Daniel ;  for  the  southern 
combatant  was  fully  determined  to  fight. 

Abraham  was  by  far  the  best  speller  in  Crawford's 
school.  It  was  not  expected  by  teacher  or  pupils  that 
he  would  miss  a  word.  More  than  that  he  sometimes 
taxed  his  ingenuity  to  help  others  out  of  difficulty  in 
their  spelling  classes.     One  day  a  class  was  spelling 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND  SCHOOLS.  117 


and  Crawford  put  out  the  word  defied.  The  girl  co 
whom  the  word  was  given  spelled  it  de-f-i-de.  The 
next  one,  d-e-f-y-d  ;  the  third,  d-e-f-y-d-e ;  the  fourth, 
d-e-f-y-e-d  ;  and  soon,  not  one  spelling  the  word  cor- 
rectly, Crawford  became  angry. 

"What  I "  he  bawled  out,  "  these  big  boys  and  girls 
not  able  to  spell  the  simple  word  defied!  There 
shan't  one  of  you  go  home  to-night  if  you  don't  spell 
it,  you  lazy,  ignorant  louts." 

Just  then,  a  girl  in  the  class  by  the  name  of  Roby, 
to  whom  Abraham  was  somewhat  partial,  looked  up, 
and  took  a  valuable  hint  from  his  smiling  face.  To 
use  her  own  language,  as  she  described  the  scene  many 
years  thereafter :  — 

"  I  saw  Abe  at  the  window ;  he  had  his  finger  in  hi? 
eye,  and  a  smile  on  his  face.  I  immediately  took  the 
hint,  that  I  must  change  the  letter  y  into  an  i.  Hence 
I  spelled  the  word,  —  the  class  was  let  out.  I  felt 
grateful  to  Abe  for  this  simple  thing." 

Notwithstanding  Crawford's  was  a  "  pioneer  college," 
he  taught  "  manners."  He  rather  prided  himself  on 
teaching  his  pupils  etiquette,  at  least,  as  far  as  he 
knew.  Imparting  to  his  scholars  some  idea  about 
cultivated  society  in  thoroughly  civilized  places,  he 
converted  his  school-room  into  a  parlor  of  "  ladies  and 
gentlemen."  One  pupil  was  required  to  go  out,  then 
re-enter  in  the  role  of  a  gentleman  or  lady  stranger, 
whom  another  pupil  introduced  to  every  one  in  the 
room.  Imagine  Abraham,  almost  six  feet  high,  though 
but  fifteen  years  of  age,  homely  as  he  could  well  be, 
clumsy  and  gawky  in  his  appearance,  clad  in  pioneer 
style,  with  legs  and  arms  out  of  all  proportion  to  his 


Il8        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

head  and  body,  going  through  this  ordeal  of  refine- 
ment !  Nat.  Grigsby  describes  Abraham,  at  that  time, 
thus  :  "  He  was  long,  wiry  and  strong ;  while  his  big 
feet  and  hands,  and  the  length  of  his  legs  and  arms, 
were  out  of  all  proportion  to  his  small  trunk  and  head0 
His  complexion  was  very  swarthy,  and  his  skin  was 
shrivelled  and  yellow  even  then.  He  wore  low  shoes, 
buckskin  breeches,  linsey-woolsey  shirt,  and  a  cap 
made  of  the  skin  of  an  opossum  or  coon.  The  breeches 
clung  close  to  his  thighs  and  legs,  but  failed  by  a  large 
space  to  reach  the  tops  of  his  shoes.  Twelve  inches 
remained  uncovered,  and  exposed  that  much  of  shin 
bone,  sharp,  blue,  and  narrow."  It  must  have  been  a 
comical  sight,  when  this  overgrown  and  awkward  boy 
was  required  to  play  the  gentleman,  and  was  put 
through  a  course  of  "manners"  indispensable  to  pio- 
neers, as  Crawford  thought.  It  did  him  good,  however, 
as  we  judge  from  the  words  of  Mrs.  Josiah  Crawford 
for  whose  husband  Abraham  subsequently  worked, 
She  said,  "  Abe  was  polite ;  lifted  his  hat  on  meeting 
strangers  ;  and  always  removed  it  from  his  head  on 
coming  into  the  house." 

Three  years  after  Abraham  attended  Crawford's 
school,  he  attended  another,  nearly  five  miles  distant, 
taught  by  one  Swaney.  He  continued  but  a  short 
time  at  this  school,  since  the  great  distance  consumed 
too  much  of  his  time.  But  John  Hoskins,  who  was  a 
fellow-pupil,  declares  that  "  Abe  took  the  lead,  and  was 
big  in  spellin',"  when  "we  would  choose  up,  and 
spell  every  Friday  night." 

Here,  Abraham's  school-days  ended ;  and  all  his 
schooling  amounted  to  less  than  one  year.    Neverthe 


A   NEW  MOTHER  AND   SCHOOLS.  IK) 

less,  according  to  David  Turnham,  he  completely 
drained  his  teachers.  We  have  his  word  for  it,  that 
"  Abe  beat  all  his  masters,  and  it  was  no  use  for  him 
to  try  to  learn  any  more  from  them/' 

We  may  add,  in  closing  this  chapter,  that  about  this 
time,  Levi  Hall,  a  relative  of  the  Lincolns,  removed  from 
Kentucky  with  his  family,  and  settled  near  them. 
Also  John  Hanks,  cousin  of  the  first  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and 
son  of  Joseph  Hanks  of  Elizabethtown,  of  whom  Tom 
Lincoln  learned  the  carpenter's  trade,  came  to  live  with 
the  latter.  John  had  no  education  ;  could  neither  read 
nor  write ;  but  he  was  a  temperate,  upright,  truthful 
man,  without  a  particle  of  Abraham's  wit,  and  none  of 
his  extreme  awkwardness.  He  lived  four  years  with 
Mr.  Lincoln  ;  then  returned  to  Kentucky  ;  whence  he 
removed  to  Illinois,  where  we  shall  meet  him  again. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

BORROWING,   AND  WHAT  CAME   OF  IT. 

]HE  greatest  man  that  ever  lived ! "  said 
Abraham,  as  he  sat  upon  a  log  in  the 
woods,  conversing  with  David  Turnham. 
"  This  country  has  a  right  to  be  proud  of 
Washington." 

"  That  is  your  opinion ;  but  I  guess  the  British 
won't  say  so,"  answered  David. 

"And  that  is  just  because  they  were  whipped  by 
him  ;  and  they  don't  want  to  own  up." 

"  How  do  you  know  so  much  about  Washington, 
Abe?" 

"  Because  I  have  read  about  him,  and  I  always 
heard  that  he  made  the  red-coats  run  for   life." 

"  Who  do  you  mean  by  the  red-coats  ? " 

"  Why,  the  British,  to  be  sure.  They  were  called 
'red-coats/  because  they  wore  coats  of  that  color.  I 
expect  that  they  looked  splendidly,  though  they  did  n't 
feel  very  splendidly,  I  guess,  after  they  got  whipped." 

"  Have  you  read  the  Life  of  Washington?" 

"  Of  course  I  have,  a  good  while  ago.  I  read  Ram- 
say's Life  of  Washington,  and  that  shows  that  he  was 
the  greatest  man  who  ever  lived." 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      121 

"  Is  that  like  the  one  Josiah  Crawford  has  ?" 

"  I  did  n't  know  that  Mr.  Crawford  had  a  Life  of 
Washington.,, 

"  Well,  he  has  ;  for  I  heard  him  talking  with  father 
about  it." 

"  How  long  ago  ?  " 

'•  Not  more  than  two  or  three  weeks  ago." 

•'  You  don't  know  the  name  of  the  author  ?  There 
are  lives  of  Washington  written  by  different  men." 

"  I  don't  remember  who  wrote  this.  I  did  n't  mind 
much  about  what  they  were  saying." 

"I  can  find  out,"  added  Abraham;  and  he  did 
find  out.  He  embraced  the  first  opportunity  to  in- 
quire of  a  neighbor,  and  learned  that  it  was  Weems's 
Life  of  Washington  that  Mr.  Crawford  owned. 

"  Can  I  borrow  it  ? "  he  inquired  of  his  parents,  for 
he  was  very  anxious  to  read  it. 

"  Perhaps  he  won't  like  to  lend  it,"  answered  his 
mother. 

"  I  shall  find  that  out  when  I  ask  him,"  said  Abra- 
ham. 

"  And  you  should  tell  him  that  you  will  not  take  it 
unless  he  is  perfectly  willing  to  let  you  have  it." 

"  Then  I  may  ask  him,  may  I  ? " 

"  If  you  are  very  desirous  to  read  it." 

"  Well,  I  am,  and  I  will  go  there  to-night  when  I 
get  through  work." 

Abraham  was  elated  with  the  idea  of  getting  hold  of 
this  new  work.  He  viewed  the  character  of  Wash- 
ington with  admiration,  and  he  would  know  what 
different  biographers  said  of  him.  He  was  not  a  little 
impatient  for  his  day's  work  to  be  done.     He  toiled  as 


122        PIONEER  HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 

usual,  however,  with  a  good  degree  of  interest  in  his 
work,  until  night,  when  he  prepared  himself  to  call  on 
Mr.  Crawford. 

The  family  gave  him  a  cordial  welcome,  and  Mrs. 
Crawford  said  :  "  I  wonder  what  has  brought  you  out 
to-night.     I  have  n't  seen  you  here  for  a  long  time." 

"  Perhaps  you  won't  be  so  glad  to  see  me  after  you 
learn  what  I  came  for,"  replied  Abraham. 

"  And  what  did  you  come  for,  that  makes  you  think 
so?"  asked  Mr.  Crawford. 

"  I  came  to  borrow  a  book." 

"  A  book,  hey!     That  is  a  good  errand,  I  am  sure." 

"  But  I  did  not  know  as  you  would  be  willing  to 
lend  it." 

"What  book  is  it  ?"  asked  Mr.  Crawford.  "I  have 
no  doubt  that  I  can  accommodate  you." 

"  It  is  the  Life  of  Washington.  I  was  told  that  you 
had  it,  and  I  want  to  read  it." 

"  I  wish  all  the  boys  wanted  to  read  it,"  said  Mr. 
Crawford.  "  I  will  lend  it  to  you,  Abe,  with  great 
pleasure.     I  am  glad  to  see  that  you  like  to  read." 

"  I  will  not  take  it  unless  you  are  perfectly  willing 
to  lend  it,"  said  Abraham. 

"  If  I  did  not  want  you  should  have  it,  1  should  tell 
you  so.  I  am  not  one  of  those  persons  who  are  afraid 
to  tell  what  they  think.  I  am  glad  that  I  have  the 
book  to  lend  you." 

"  I  will  take  good  care  of  it,  and  return  it  to  you 
all  safe,"  responded  Abraham.  This  was  just  like  him. 
So  considerate  a  boy  would  not  ask  the  loan  of  a  book 
without  some  diffidence,  and  when  it  was  borrowed,  he 
would  feel  that  great  care  must  be  used  to  preserve  it 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      1 23 

He  valued  the  few  books  which  he  himself  possessed 
so  highly  as  to  lead  him  to  think  that  other  people 
held  their  volumes  in  equal  estimation.  It  was  really 
an  excellent  trait  of  character  that  caused  him  to  use 
so  much  discretion  in  borrowing  books,  for  the  bor- 
rowing of  this  single  article  has  been  the  occasion  of 
much  trouble  in  neighborhoods.  In  consequence  of 
thoughtlessness  and  less  regard  for  the  interests  of 
others  than  their  own,  many  persons  have  borrowed 
books  and  never  returned  them,  or  else  returned  them 
in  a  much  worse  condition  than  when  they  were  re- 
ceived. Frequently  books  are  lost  in  this  way  from 
Sabbath-school  and  other  libraries.  Borrowers  do 
not  return  them.  They  think  so  little  of  their  obli- 
gations, that  the  books  are  forgotten  and  lost.  Book- 
borrowers  are  very  apt  to  be  negligent,  so  that  when 
we  see  a  lad  so  particular  as  Abraham  was,  it  is  worth 
while  to  take  note  of  the  fact. 

"  It  will  take  me  some  time  to  read  so  large  a 
work,"  said  he,  as  he  took  it  from  Mr.  Crawford. 
"  Perhaps  you  will  want  it  before  I  get  through  with 
it." 

"Oh,  no  ;  you  are  such  a  great  reader  that  you  will 
finish  it  in  short  metre.  Keep  it  as  long  as  you  want 
it,  and  I  shall  be  suited." 

"  I  thank  you,"  Abraham  replied,  as  he  arose  to 
leave.     "  Good  night." 

"  Good  night,"  several  voices  responded. 

It  was  a  very  joyful  evening  to  Abraham  as  he 
bore  that  Life  of  Washington  home,  and  sat  down 
about  the  middle  of  the  evening  to  read  the  first  chap 
ter  therein, 


124       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Keep  it  nice,"  said  his  mother.  "  Remember  that 
it  is  a  borrowed  book." 

"I  will  try"  he  replied.  "Mr.  Crawford  was  per- 
fectly willing  to  lend  it,  and  I  shall  be  none  the  less 
careful  on  that  account." 

Those  were  pleasant  hours  of  leisure  that  he  de* 
voted  to  reading  Weems's  Life  of  Washington.  Every 
evening,  after  his  day's  labor  was  completed,  he  read 
♦he  work  with  absorbing  interest,  and  at  other  times, 
when  he  could  find  a  spare  moment,  it  was  in  his  hand. 
He  had  nearly  completed  it,  when  the  following 
mishap  caused  him  many  unpleasant  thoughts  and 
feelings. 

A  driving  storm  was  raging,  so  that  he  could  per- 
form little  labor  except  what  could  be  done  under 
cover.  Of  course  his  book  was  in  his  hand  much  of 
the  time,  and  the  whole  of  the  dreary  evening,  to  a 
late  hour,  was  his  companion.  On  going  to  bed,  he 
laid  it  down  directly  under  a  large  crack  between  the 
logs,  and  the  wind  changing  in  the  night,  the  rain  was 
driven  into  the  house,  and  the  book  was  wet  through, 
The  first  sight  that  met  Abraham's  eyes  in  the 
morning  was  the  drenched  book,  and  his  feelings  can 
be  better  imagined  than  described. 

"O  dear!"  he  exclaimed.  "That  book  is  spoiled!" 
And  he  could  scarcely  restrain  the  tears  that  welled 
up  to  his  eyes. 

"  How  did  you  happen  to  lay  it  there  ?  "  asked  his 
mother. 

"  I  never  thought  about  its  raining  in  there.  But 
only  look  at  it !  it  is  completely  soaked ! "  and  he  lifted 
it  up  carefully  to  show  his  mother 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      I2J 

"  Oh,  I  am  so  sorry  !  it  is  ruined  !  "  she  said. 

"  I  can  dry  it,"  answered  Abraham,  "  but  that  will 
not  leave  it  decent.  See  !  the  cover  will  drop  off,  and 
there  is  no  help  for  it.  What  will  Mr.  Crawford  say  ? 
I  told  him  that  I  would  keep  it  very  carefully,  and  re- 
turn it  to  him  uninjured." 

"  Well,  it  is  done,  and  can't  be  helped  now,"  added 
his  mother ;  "  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  you  can  fix  it 
with  Mr.  Crawford." 

"  I  have  no  money  to  pay  him  for  it,  and  I  don't  see 
how  I  can  make  it  good  to  him.  He  ought  to  be  paid 
for  it." 

"  Of  course  he  had,  and  he  may  want  you  to  do 
some  work  for  him,  which  will  be  the  same  as  money 
to  him.  You'd  better  take  the  book  to  him  to-day 
and  see  what  you  can  do." 

"  I  am  almost  ashamed  to  go.  He  will  think  that  I 
am  a  careless  fellow." 

"  Never  be  ashamed  to  do  right,  my  son." 

"  I  am  not  ashamed  to  do  right.  I  was  only  say- 
ing how  I  felt.  I  told  him  that  I  would  keep  it 
nicely." 

"And  so  you  meant  to;  but  accidents  will  happen 
sometimes,  even  if  we  are  careful." 

"He  shall  be  paid  for  it  somehow,"  continued  Abra 
ham.     "  I  will  see  him  today." 

The  volume  was  exposed  to  the  heat  of  the  fire  that 
day,  and  when  Abraham  was  ready  to  go  to  Mr.  Craw- 
ford's in  the  evening,  it  was  dry  enough  for  transpor- 
tation. The  storm  had  passed  away,  and  the  stars  were 
looking  down  from  the  skies,  as  he  took  the  book, 
carefully  wrapped  in  a  cotton  handkerchief,  and  pro- 


126       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

- ■ ■'■  m 

ceeded  to  Mr.  Crawford's.  His  heart  was  heavy  and 
sad,  and  he  dreaded  to  open  the  subject  to  him. 

"  Good  evening,  A^be !  Got  through  with  the  book 
so  quick  ?  "  said  Mr.  Crawford. 

"  Good  evening,"  responded  Abraham,  in  his  usual 
manly  way.  "  I  have  brought  the  book  back,  although 
I  have  not  finished  it." 

"Keep  it,  then,  keep  it,"  replied  Mr.  Crawford, 
before  the  lad  could  tell  his  story.  "  I  told  you  to  keep 
it  as  long  as  you  wanted  it." 

"  Perhaps  you  won't  want  I  should  keep  it  when  you 
hear  what  has  happened  to  it."  And  he  proceeded  to 
untie  the  handkerchief  in  which  it  was  wrapped. 

"There,"  continued  Abraham,  exhibiting  the  book; 
"  it  ;s  ruined.  I  laid  it  down  last  night  where  the  rain 
beat  in  and  wet  it  through,  and  it  is  spoiled.  I'm  very 
sorry  indeed,  and  want  to  pay  you  for  it  in  some  way." 

Josiah  Crawford  was  a  hard  man  by  nature,  and  an 
excess  of  whiskey  made  him  harder.  He  was  not  a 
relative  of  Andrew  Crawford,  the  teacher,  although  he 
was  like  him  in  one  particular — he  had  an  ungovern- 
able temper.  At  sight  of  the  ruined  volume  his 
countenance  changed,  and  he  snapped  out  in  his  wrath : 

"  Carelessness  !     Pretty  mess  for  a  borrowed  book." 

Had  he  not  been  a  good  friend  of  Abraham,  there  is 
no  telling  what  abuse  he  might  have  heaped  upon  the 
boy.  As  it  was,  with  all  his  regard  for  Abraham  as  an 
uncommon  youth,  he  poured  out  large  vials  of  wrath 
upon  him,  the  boy  all  the  while  declaring  that  he  was 
willing  to  pay  for  it. 

"  I've  ruined  the  book,  and  I'll  do  any  work  you  say 
to  pay  for  it.     Have  you  any  work  I  can  do  ?" 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      1 27 

Crawford's  wrath  abated  somewhat  when  he  heard 
the  word  work.  The  idea  of  getting  work  out  of  the 
lad  was  tempting  to  him  ;  for  he  was  an  unscrupulous, 
avaricious,  stingy  man,  and  now  was  his  time  to  take 
advantage  of  Abraham's  generosity. 

"  Yes,  work  enough,"  he  growled,  angry  as  a  panther 
that  prowled  about  the  forest  at  night. 

"How  much  was  the  book  worth  ?"  asked  Abraham. 

"Mor'n  I'll  ever  get,"  Crawford  growled  again. 

"I'll  work  to  pay  its  full  value,  and  keep  it  for  my 
own,  if  you  say  so,"  continued  Abraham. 

After  further  parleying,  Crawford,  seeing  his  oppor- 
tunity to  make  something  out  of  Abraham,  cooled 
down  to  ordinary  heat,  and  proceeded  to  say : 

"I  tell  you  what  it  is,  Abe,  I'm  in  great  trouble  about 
my  corn.  You  see  the  whole  of  my  corn  has  been 
stripped  of  the  blades  as  high  as  the  ear,  and  is  now 
ready  to  have  the  tops  cut  off  for  winter  fodder ;  but 
my  hands  are  full  of  other  work,  and  how  it  is  to  be 
done  is  more  than  I  can  tell.  Now,  if  you  can  help  me 
out  of  this  scrape,  we  can  square  the  account  about  the 
book." 

"  I'll  do  it,"  replied  Abraham,  with  emphasis.  "  How 
much  of  it  shall  I  cut?" 

"All  of  it,  of  course,"  answered  Crawford,  un- 
pleasantly; "you  can't  expect  to  get  such  a  book  for 
nothing." 

Abraham  was  taken  somewhat  by  surprise  by  this 
exorbitant  demand ;  nevertheless,  he  was  equal  to  the 
occasion,  and  promptly  responded : 

"  Well,  then,  I'll  cut  the  whole  of  it ;  when  shall  I 
fcegin?" 


J28        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"To-morrow  morning  ; "  and  the  exacting  manner  in 
which  he  thus  proceeded  awakened  Abraham's  con« 
tempt  for  him.     Still  he  answered : 

"  To-morrow  morning  it  is,  then  ;  I'll  be  on  hand  as 
early  as  you  want  to  see  me." 

Abraham  hastened  home  and  reported.  His  parents 
united  with  him  in  the  opinion  that  it  was  one  of  Craw- 
ford's acts  of  extortion.  Still,  they  were  glad  that  their 
son  could  settle  the  affair  in  some  way. 

Abraham  undertook  to  redeem  his  pledge  on  the  next 
day,  and,  bright  and  early,  he  was  in  Crawford's  corn- 
field. There  were  several  acres  of  the  corn,  and  several 
days  of  very  hard  work  would  be  required  to  finish  the 
job.  Abraham  bent  himself  to  the  task  with  more  than 
usual  determination,  and  completed  it  in  about  three 
days,  although  ordinarily,  a  man  would  have  needed 
nearly  five  days  in  which  to  perform  the  work. 

Abraham  never  forgot  the  extortion  which  Crawford 
practised  upon  him,  and  he  always  despised  his  over- 
reaching propensity.  Still,  he  was  glad  to  own  another 
volume,  especially  one  of  so  much  value  as  Weems's 
Life  of  Washington.  That  Crawford  forgot  his  own 
meanness,  is  quite  evident  from  the  fact,  that,  sub- 
sequently, he  sought  Abraham's  services,  and  those  of 
his  sister  to  assist  his  wife.  Both  Abraham  and  Sarah 
were  glad  of  the  opportunity  to  earn  an  honest  dollar, 
and  accepted  his  proposition.  They  lived  with  Craw- 
ford several  months  during  that  year,  and  pleased  the 
crabbed  old  fellow  mightily.  Abraham  finished  his  log- 
house  by  "  daubing  it,"  that  is,  filling  the  interstices 
between  the  unhewn  logs  with  clay,  especially  the  loft 
in  which  he  lodged. 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      1 29 


He  split  many  rails  for  Crawford  during  that  season} 
planted,  sowed  and  harvested,  receiving  only  twenty- 
five  cents  a  day.  If  he  lost  only  a  few  minutes  from 
hajxl  work,  as  he  would  on  some  days,  his  employer 
deducted  it  from  his  small  wages,  thereby  exposing  his 
contemptible  spirit,  though  Abraham  never  protested. 

Abraham  might  not  have  remained  at  Crawford's 
during  the  whole  season,  but  for  the  presence  of  his 
sister  there,  and  his  high  respect  for  Mrs.  Crawford, 
who  was  an  excellent  woman ;  "  nothing  that  her  hus- 
band was,  and  everything  that  he  was  not." 

He  found  several  books  there  which  he  had  never 
seen  before  ;  and  these  he  read  over  and  over  at  night. 
One  of  them  was  the  Kentucky  Preceptor,  which  he 
pored  over  with  unusual  interest,  because  it  contained 
dialogues  and  declamations.  Many  of  these  he  com- 
mitted to  memory ;  indeed,  when  his  time  was  up  at 
Crawford's,  he  had  no  need  to  carry  away  the  books, 
for  the  contents  of  them  were  in  his  head.  Although 
his  employer  paid  him  little  more  than  half  of  what  the 
boy  ought  to  have  had,  it  proved  to  be  a  good  place  for 
him  on  account  of  the  books  that  he  used  for  his  own 
personal  improvement. 

Josiah  Crawford  was  as  homely  as  he  was  ill-tempered. 
The  lids  of  his  eyes  were  red  as  a  lobster's  claw,  and  his 
nose  was  considerably  longer  than  it  should  have  been 
for  symmetry  and  beauty  ;  and  what  was  worse  yet,  a 
bad  habit  had  pimpled  and  reddened  the  end  of  it  as  if 
purposely  to  make  him  ugly-looking.  Abraham  cele- 
brated the  characteristics  of  Crawford's  nose  in  verse, 
sometime  after  he  ceased  laboring  for  him,  perhaps  the 
following  winter.     Afterwards  when  he  was  indulging 


I30        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

his  gift  for  "  Chronicles,"  he  embalmed  the  memory  of 
it  in  that  style  of  composition.  These  literary  efforts 
spread  both  the  fame  of  Crawford's  nose  and  the  talents 
ot  the  writer.  How  widely  the  subject-matter  of  his 
i;  verse"  and  " chronicles"  were  discussed  and  enjoyed, 
is  learned  from  the  fact  that  one  of  his  biographers 
says,  that  the  fame  of  Crawford's  nose  spread  "  as  wide 
as  to  the  Wabash  and  the  Ohio."  We  cite  the  incident 
only  to  show  that  Abraham  wielded  a  facile  pen  at  that 
early  day,  and  that  the  people  regarded  him  as  a  mar- 
vellous boy. 

Mrs.  Josiah  Crawford  records  a  curious  incident  con- 
cerning Abraham.  During  the  season  he  worked  for 
her  husband,  he  frequently  lingered  after  dinner  to 
have  a  frolic  with  the  girls  in  the  kitchen.  One  day 
he  became  unusually  boisterous,  when  Mrs.  Crawford 
reproved  him  for  "  fooling,"  and  asked,  "  What  do  you 
think  will  ever  become  of  you?"  Abraham  replied 
promptly,  "be  President  of  the  United  States."  Nor  was 
this  the  only  occasion  of  his  making  a  similar  remark. 
He  often  used  it  in  his  boyhood  and  youth.  As  his 
miserable  surroundings  absolutely  precluded  any  such 
idea,  and  he  was  wont  to  joke  about  his  homeliness, 
poverty  and  future  promise,  some  of  his  friends  suppose 
that  he  made  the  remark  in  a  vein  of  pleasantry.  But 
whether  so  or  not,  the  fact  is  worthy  of  record. 

Long  before  this  time,  Mr.  Lincoln  had  discontinued 
the  use  of  his  domestic  grist-mill,  for  Hoffman  built  a 
mill  to  run  by  water,  on  Anderson's  Creek,  twelve 
miles  away.  To  this  mill  Abraham  and  David  Turn- 
ham  carried  their  grists,  until  Gordon  built  a  horse- 
mill  within  a  few  miles  of  Lincoln's  cabin.     Then  their 


BORROWING,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.      131 

patronage  was  transferred  to  Gordon's.  To  the  latter 
place  Abraham  carried  a  grist  one  day,  and  safely  tied 
the  "old  mare"  while  waiting  for  the  grinding.  When 
the  time  came  to  start  for  home,  he  untied  the  mare, 
jumped  on,  and  started  the  animal  so  suddenly  with  a 
"  cluck,"  and  stroke  of  a  stick,  that  she  kicked  furiously, 
and  knocked  him  head  over  heels,  from  the  cart  to  the 
ground.  He  was  picked  up  in  a  state  of  insensibility, 
the  bystanders  fearing  that  life  was  extinct.  For  sev- 
eral minutes  he  remained  insensible,  and  when  con- 
sciousness returned,  he  finished  the  "cluck,"  that  was 
only  half  uttered  when  the  ugly  beast  knocked  him 
over.  Many  years  afterward,  he  had  discussions  with 
his  law  partner  at  Springfield,  111.,  Mr.  Herndon,  as  to 
the  psychological  explanation  of  this  remarkable  phe- 
nomenon. One  person  remarked  that  it  "was  an 
illustration  of  Abe's  perseverance  —  he  always  accom- 
plished what  he  undertook." 

The  next  chapter  will  disclose  the  manner  in  which 
Abraham  worked  and  studied,  growing  in  knowledge 
and  popularity  daily 


CHAPTER    X. 

WORKING   AND   WINNING. 

JHE  reader  should  understand  the  society 
in  which  Abraham  mixed,  in  order  to  ap- 
preciate fully  the  elements  of  character 
which  enabled  him  to  work  and  win  from 
fifteen  to  eighteen  years  of  age.  Mrs.  Crawford,  whom 
we  have  already  quoted,  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Herndon, 
furnishes  rather  a  vivid  picture  of  the  social  state  at 
that  time.     She  says  :  — 

"  You  wish  me  to  tell  you  how  the  people  used  to 
go  to  meeting, — how  far  they  went.  At  that  time  we 
thought  it  nothing  to  go  eight  or  ten  miles.  The  old 
ladies  did  not  stop  for  the  want  of  a  shawl,  or  cloak,  or 
riding-dress,  or  two  horses,  in  the  winter  time ;  but 
they  would  put  on  their  husband's  old  overcoats,  and 
wrap  up  their  little  ones,  and  take  one  or  two  of  them 
^p  on  their  beasts,  and  their  husbands  would  walk, 
and  they  would  go  to  church,  and  stay  in  the  neighbor- 
hood until  the  next  day,  and  then  go  home.  The  old 
men  would  start  out  of  their  fields  from  their  work,  or 
out  of  the  woods  from  hunting,  with  their  guns  on 
their  shoulders,  and  go  to  church.  Some  of  them 
.iressed   in   deerskin   pants   and   moccasins,   hunting- 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  1 33 

shirts  with  a  rope  or  leather  strap  around  them.  They 
would  come  in  laughing,  shake  hands  all  around,  sit 
down  and  talk  about  their  game  they  had  killed,  or 
some  other  work  they  had  done,  and  smoke  their  pipes 
together  with  the  old  ladies.  If  in  warm  weather,  they 
would  kindle  up  a  little  fire  out  in  the  meeting-house 
yard,  to  light  their  pipes.  If  in  the  winter-time,  they 
would  hold  church  in  some  of  the  neighbors'  houses. 
At  such  times  they  were  always  treated  with  the  utmost 
kindness  ;  a  bottle  of  whiskey,  a  pitcher  of  water,  sugar 
and  a  glass,  were  set  out,  or  a  basket  of  apples,  or 
turnips,  or  some  pies  and  cakes.  Apples  were  scarce 
at  that  time.  Sometimes  potatoes  were  used  as  a 
treat.  The  first  treat  I  ever  received  in  old  Mr.  Lin- 
coln's house  (that  was  our  President's  father's  hou~e), 
was  a  plate  of  potatoes,  washed  and  pared  very  nicely, 
and  handed  round.  It  was  something  new  to  me,  for 
I  had  never  seen  a  raw  potato  eaten  before.  I  looked 
to  see  how  they  made  use  of  them.  Each  took  off  a 
potato,  and  ate  it  like  an  apple.  Thus  they  spent  the 
time  till  preaching  commenced ;  then  they  would  all 
take  their  seats ;  the  preacher  would  take  his  stand, 
draw  off  his  coat,  open  his  shirt-collar,  commence  ser- 
vice by  singing  and  prayer ;  take  his  text  and  preach  till 
the  sweat  would  roll  off  in  great  drops.  Shaking  hands 
and  singing  ended  the  service.  The  people  seemed  to 
enjoy  religious  service  more  in  those  days  than  they 
do  now.  They  were  glad  to  see  each  other,  and  en- 
joyed themselves  better  than  they  do  now." 

The  population  had  increased  very  much  at  the 
period  of  which  Mrs.  Crawford  speaks,  and  log  meet- 
ing-houses were  found  here  and  there,  at  least  for  sum 


134        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

mer  use.  Some  of  them  were  too  open  and  cold  foi 
winter  use. 

The  people  were  very  superstitious,  as  unlettered 
people  usually  are.  Mr.  Lamon  has  recorded  their 
superstitious  notions  in  a  single  paragraph,  thus  :  — 

"  They  firmly  believed  in  witches  and  all  kinds  of 
witch-doings.  They  sent  for  wizards  to  cure  sick 
cattle.  They  shot  the  image  of  the  witch  with  a 
silver  ball,  to  break  the  spell  she  was  supposed  to  have 
laid  on  a  human  being.  If  a  dog  ran  directly  across  a 
man's  path  whilst  he  was  hunting,  it  was  terrible 
'luck/  unless  he  instantly  hooked  his  two  little 
fingers  together,  and  pulled  with  all  his  might,  until 
the  dog  was  out  of  sight.  There  were  wizards  who 
took  charmed  sticks  in  their  hands,  and  made  them 
point  to  springs  of  water  and  all  kinds  of  treasure  be- 
neath the  earth's  surface.  There  were  '  faith  doctors ' 
who  cured  diseases  by  performing  mysterious  cere, 
monies  and  muttering  cabalistic  words.  If  a  bird 
alighted  in  a  window,  one  of  the  family  would  speedily 
die.  If  a  horse  breathed  on  a  child,  the  child  would 
have  the  whooping-cough.  Every  thing  must  be  done 
at  certain  '  times  and  seasons.'  They  must  make 
fence  'in  the  light  of  the  moon/  otherwise  the  fence 
would  sink.  Potatoes  and  other  roots  were  to  be 
planted  '  in  the  dark  of  the  moon/  but  trees  and 
plants  which  bare  their  fruits  above  ground  must  be 
'  put  out  in  the  light  of  the  moon.'  The  moon  exerted 
a  fearful  influence,  either  kindly  or  malignant,  as  the 
good  old  rules  were  observed  or  not.  It  was  even  re- 
quired to  make  soap  '  in  the  light  of  the  moon/  and, 
moreover,  it  must  be  stirred  only  one  way,  and  by  one 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  135 

person.  Nothing  of  importance  was  to  be  begun  on 
Friday.  All  enterprises  inaugurated  on  that  day  went 
fatally  amiss." 

Abraham  Lincoln  was  reared  from  infancy  to  man 
hood  among  these  people.  Their  manners,  customs, 
habits,  and  opinions,  were  familiar  to  him,  and  he  knew 
no  others  by  which  to  judge  of  them  by  contrast.  The 
children  of  those  people  were  his  daily  companions. 
He  worked  for  and  with  their  parents,  heard  their 
conversation,  witnessed  their  want  and  ignorance,  and 
nowhere  found  those  intellectual  conditions  which  could 
satisfy  a  mind  like  his.  It  is  not  strange  that  some  of 
the  peculiarities  of  the  people,  with  whom  he  was  reared, 
became  his,  and  clung  to  him  through  life. 

The  incidents  of  this  chapter  will  serve  to  magnify 
the  mental  and  moral  qualities  of  Abraham,  which 
enabled  him  to  improve  and  rise  higher  and  higher 
even  with  such  unfavorable  surroundings. 

James  Taylor,  who  lived  at  the  mouth  of  Anderson's 
Creek,  was  anxious  to  secure  Abraham's  services. 

"  I  will  give  him  six  dollars  a  month  and  his  board," 
said  Mr.  Taylor  to  Mr.  Lincoln  ;  ''and  that  is  good  pay 
for  a  boy  sixteen  years  old." 

"  Fair  pay,"  responded  Mr.  Lincoln.  "  You  want  him 
to  run  your  ferry-boat?"  Mr.  Taylor  ran  a  ferry-boat 
across  both  the  Ohio  and  Anderson's  Creek. 

"Yes,  and  other  jobs  that  I  want  done;  some  farm- 
work  ;  to  take  care  of  the  horses,  and  chore  about,"  was 
Mr.  Taylor's  reply. 

{i  Abe  can  do  as  well  by  you  in  such  work  as  a  man 
grown,  though  I  don't  expect  to  get  a  man's  wages  fof 
him,"  added  Mr.  Lincoln. 


136       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"That  is  the  reason  I  want  him,"  said  Mr.  Taylor 
"I  would  n't  give  many  boys  that  price  anyhow;  but  I 
know  that  Abe  is  reliable,  and  he  knows  which  side  his 
bread  is  buttered." 

"For  how  many  months  will  you  pay  him  six  dollars 
a  month?" 

"For  nine  months  certainly,  and  perhaps  longer." 

"That's  satisfactory  ;  perhaps  I  won't  want  he  should 
stay  any  longer." 

"  Well,"  continued  Mr.  Taylor,  "do  I  understand  that 
he  may  go?     I  want  him  at  once." 

"  He  may  go,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln  ;  "  and  he  may 
begin  at  once  if  you  say  so." 

"I  say  so  ;  and  shall  expect  to  see  him  to-morrow," 
added  Mr.  Taylor,  as  he  turned  away  and  drove  off. 

Abraham  was  duly  installed  ferryman  by  his  employer, 
though  he  was  given  to  understand  that,  at  times,  he 
would  be  expected  to  act  as  farmer,  hostler,  and  house- 
servant.  He  particularly  enjoyed  being  ferryman,  as 
it  was  new  business  for  him  ;  and,  like  most  boys,  he 
loved  boating.  He  was  very  large  of  his  age  and  very 
strong,  and  could  therefore  handle  a  boat  as  easily  and 
effectively  as  a  man.  He  was  growing  rapidly  still, 
and,  at  seventeen  years  of  age,  he  was  six  feet  and  four 
inches  high  —  both  the  tallest  and  strongest  person  in 
Spencer  County. 

Abraham  was  expected  to  be  the  first  one  up  in  the 
house  in  the  morning,  "build  the  fire,"  "put  on  the 
water  in  the  kitchen,"  and  "  get  things  prepared  for 
cooking,"  before  Mrs.  Taylor  put  in  her  appearance. 
Other  thing©,  such  as  bringing  wood  and  water,  he 
attended  to  with  scrupulous  exactness.      It  was  not 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  137 

strange  that  the  mistress  of  the  house  soon  came  to 
regard  him  as  the  most  wonderful  boy  she  ever 
knew.  We  doubt  if  she  had  ever  found  a  man  or  boy, 
not  excepting  her  own  husband  and  son,  who  was  so 
"wonderful"  as  to  "chore  about"  a^  Abraham  did, 
without  protesting.  He  was  in  the  truest  sense  a 
"  man-of-all-work "  at  Taylor's,  doing  whatsoever  his 
hands  found  to  do  with  all  his  might. 

Here  Abraham  found  a  History  of  the  United 
States,  and  two  or  three  other  volumes,  that  en. 
grossed  his  attention  at  night.  He  slept  up  stairs 
with  Green  Taylor,  son  of  his  employer,  a  young  man 
older  than  himself,  without  any  of  his  brightness  or 
ambition  ;  and  there  he  often  extended  his  reading 
far  into  the  night,  much  to  the  annoyance  of  his  bed- 
fellow. 

"  Blow  out  that  light  and  come  to  bed,  Abe,"  he 
exclaimed  more  than  once.  "  Til  be  bound  if  you  shall 
spoil  my  sleep  for  a  book." 

"  Let  me  read  you  a  page  or  two,"  Abraham  pro- 
vokingly,  though  jocosely,  answered.  "  A  snooze  is  of 
no  account  in  comparison  with  the  History  of  the 
United  States."  And  he  continued  to  read  until 
interrupted  by  another  appeal  out  of  the  bedclothes. 

"  Abe,  I  say,  if  you  don't  come  to  bed,  I'll  get  up 
and  blow  your  light  out." 

"  Will  ?  Well ;  I  would  if  I  was  in  your  place.  Per- 
haps you  can  blow  it  out  without  getting  up.  Try  it ; 
there  is  a  good  amount  of  blow  in  you." 

The  fretted  sleeper  could  get  no  satisfaction  in 
appealing  to  the  midnight  reader.  A  good-natured 
humorous  reply  was  all  Abraham  would  yield  to  him. 


138       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Once  Green  Taylor  struck  the  "  hired  boy,"  in  an  angry 
mood,  but  Abraham  did  not  strike  back  again.  He 
was  indignant  enough  to  do  it ;  but,  being  a  greater 
warrior  than  he  who  taketh  a  city,  he  controlled  his 
own  spirit,  and  continued  to  read  on.  Years  after- 
wards Green  Taylor  lived  to  rehearse  his  experience 
with  Abraham,  and  tell  what  a  marvellous  boy  he  was. 

"Why,  he  would  work  hard  all  day,  read  till  mid- 
night, and  then  get  up  before  anybody  in  the  morning. 
I  never  saw  such  a  fellow.  He  was  like  Abe  Lincoln 
and  nobody  else."  Referring  to  his  act  of  striking 
him,  he  said,  "  Abe  was  mad,  but  he  didn't  thrash 
me."  The  language  implies  that  Abraham  could 
easily  have  avenged  himself  by  whipping  the  offender, 
but  that  he  forbore  —  his  better  judgment  and  nature 
controlling  instead  of  passion. 

At  Taylor's,  Abraham  tried  his  hand  at  hog-killing 
for  the  first  time.  He  had  assisted  many  times  in  the 
slaughtering  of  hogs,  but  never  before  had  played  the 
part  of  butcher. 

"  You  can  try  it,  Abe,"  said  Mr.  Taylor,  who  saw 
that  the  boy  could  do  anything  he  would  undertake. 
"  What  do  you  say  ? " 

"  Just  as  you  say,"  answered  Abraham  ;  "  if  you'll 
risk  the  hogs  Til  risk  myself."  Mr.  Taylor,  laughing 
at  this  reply,  responded  : — 

€i  I'll  take  the  risk  ;  so  you  may  go  ahead." 

In  this  way  Abraham  became  a  butcher,  and  soon 
grew  so  expert  in  the  rough  business  that  farmers  em- 
ployed him.  He  slaughtered  hogs  for  John  Dathan, 
Stephen  Mc  Daniels,  John  Woods,  and  others;  and 
Mr.  Taylor  received  thirty-one  cents  a  day  for  the 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  1 39 

boy's  services  in  this  line.  He  did  the  business  well% 
and  for  that  reason,  his  labors  were  demanded  for  hog- 
killing. 

Ferryman,  farmer,  hostler,  house-servant,  butcher— 
all  for  one  man,  and  all  well  done.  Mr.  Taylor  unwit- 
tingly paid  him  a  high  compliment,  when  he  remarked 
to  a  neighbor,  "  Abe  will  do  one  thing  about  as  well  as 
another/'  Perhaps  he  did  not  know  the  reason,  which 
was,  plainly,  that  thoroughness  was  a  rule  with  him. 
Whatever  he  did,  he  did  as  well  as  he  could. 

At  the  expiration  of  nine  months,  Abraham  returned 
home.  His  sister  married  Aaron  Grigsby  soon  after 
his  return,  and  the  event  was  celebrated  in  pioneer 
style,  in  Lincoln's  cabin.  Abraham  composed  for  the 
occasion,  what  he  entitled  "  Adam  and  Eve's  Wedding; 
Song,"  two  verses  of  which  were,  — 

u  The  Lord  was  not  willing 

That  man  should  be  alone, 
But  caused  a  sleep  upon  him, 

And  took  from  him  a  bone. 

The  woman  was  not  taken 

From  Adam's  feet  we  see ; 
So  he  must  not  abuse  her, 

The  meaning  seems  to  be." 

This  song  was  sung  at  the  wedding  with  much  eclat, 
We  may  add,  in  this  connection,  that  Abraham  had 
become  an  almost  indispensable  appendage  to  festive, 
occasions  in  all  that  region.  He  was  the  only  person 
who  could  furnish  any  literary  production  for  the 
amusement  of  either  the  old  or  young.  He  was  sur. 
charged  with  wit  and  humor,  also,  and  it  was  only 


HO       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

necessary  to  touch  him,  on  such  occasions,  and  he 
emitted  both  like  electric  sparks.  He  could  recite 
pages  of  poetry  and  prose,  and  somehow  he  could  adapt 
them  to  any  exigency  that  might  arise.  In  short,  his 
talents  and  unusual  acquisitions  made  him  a  favorite  in 
all  social  gatherings. 

One  year  after  Sarah  Lincoln  was  married,  she  died, 
and  was  laid  beside  her  mother  on  the  knoll.  This  was 
a  great  sorrow  to  Abraham,  who  loved  his  sister  ten- 
derly ;  and,  for  a  time,  his  spirits  were  considerably 
depressed. 

Some  time  after  he  served  Taylor,  he  went  to  live 
with  the  storekeeper  Jones,  at  Gentryville,  only  one 
mile  and  a  half  from  his  home.  He  was  now  a  giant 
in  stature  —  six  feet  and  four  inches  tall — almost  too 
tall  to  have  about  in  log-cabins.  Jones  was  an 
admirer  of  Abraham,  and  admitted  him  at  once  to  his 
confidence. 

"  You  can  cut  up  pork,  can't  you,  Abe  ? "  Jones  asked 

"Yes,  I  can  do  anything  about  pork,  from  killing 
and  dressing  to  eating  it."  Jones  bought  dressed  hogs, 
exchanging  goods  for  them ;  also  venison  hams,  corn, 
wheat,  and  corn-skins.  Corn  was  ten  cents  a  bushel, 
and  wheat  twenty-five  cents. 

"  How  about  the  store,  Abe  ?    Can  you  keep  store  ? " 

"  I've  never  tried  it,"  answered  Abraham.  "I'm  so 
stylish  and  graceful  that  I  might  attract  customers 
oossibly."  He  was  always  jocose  over  his  awkward 
and  homely  bearing,  and  so  he  replied  to  Jones  in  this 
facetious  way. 

"Well,  I'll  give  you  a  chance  to  display  your  attrac- 
tions," continued  Jones.     "  There's  a  great  variety  oi 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  I41 

work  to  be  done  in  such  a  place  as  this — ■  teaming, 
cutting  up  and  curing  pork,  packing  and  unpacking 
goods,  measuring  corn  and  wheat,  drawing  molasses 
and  whiskey,  and  tending  store  generally." 

Into  this  work  Abraham  was  inducted  at  once,  a  new 
field  of  labor  to  him  in  some  respects.  He  drove  team, 
packed  and  unpacked  goods,  drew  liquids  in  the  cellai 
when  required,  exhibited  and  sold  crockery,  and  other 
heavy  goods,  to  customers.  Nor  did  he  fail  to  render 
good  service  to  Mrs.  Jones,  who  soon  discovered  how 
"  handy  "  he  was  about  the  house. 

Mr.  Jones  possessed  several  books  which  Abraham 
had  not  read,  among  them  the  Life  of  Franklin.  He, 
also,  took  a  newspaper  which  Abraham  read  from 
beginning  to  end.  He  was  quite  a  politician,  too,  a 
Jackson  democrat,  and  he  often  discussed  political 
questions  with  Abraham.  In  fact,  he  made  a  Jackson 
democrat  of  Abraham,  and  the  latter  continued  in  that 
faith,  unshaken,  until  the  Life  of  Henry  Clay  came  into 
his  hands,  a  few  years  later.  Reading  that  life  of  the 
famous  "  Harry  of  the  West,"  rather  shook  his  confi- 
dence in  Jackson's  political  creed.  He  was  particularly 
taken  with  the  discouraging  surroundings  of  Clay  in 
his  boyhood  and  youth,  when  he  was  known  as  the 
"  mill-boy  of  the  slashes,"  because  those  surroundings 
were  so  much  like  those  of  his  own  boyhood.  Some 
of  his  friends  believe  that  reading  the  Life  of  Clay 
turned  his  thoughts  or  aims,  perhaps  unconsciously  to 
himself,  in  the  direction  of  a  public  career.  It  is  cer- 
tain that  he  became  a  "  Clay  Whig,"  and  continued  so 
until  the  question  of  liberty  engaged  his  heart  and  sou] 
in  Illinois. 


142       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

After  Abraham  ceased  to  serve  Mr.  Jones,  he  con- 
tinued to  visit  his  grocery  often,  in  the  evening,  in 
company  with  Dennis  Hanks  and  other  companions 
Here  politics  were  discussed,  stories  told,  jokes  cracked> 
and  general  good  friendship  established.  Abraham  was 
the  star  of  the  group,  because  he  was  full  of  wit,  an 
expert  story-teller,  and  the  only  one  of  the  number  who 
could  recite  prose  and  poetry,  and  write  them  too. 

One  night,  when  he  was  returning  from  the  grocery 
quite  late,  in  company  with  David  Turnham  and  others, 
a  man  was  discovered  lying  beside  a  mud-puddle. 

"Hallo!"  exclaimed  David,  "what's  this,  Abe?" 
stopping,  and  pulling  the  unknown  man  over. 

"  Dead  or  drunk,"  remarked  Abraham,  at  the  same 
time  proceeding  to  shake  up  the  man.     "Who  is  it  ?" 

"  More'n  I  know ;  nobody  that  I  ever  saw  before," 
David  answered.  "Shake  him  up  more  and  see 
whether  there's  any  life  in  him."  And  they  shook 
him  thoroughly  to  arouse  him,  but  in  vain. 

"  Plenty  of  rum  in  him  if  there  is  no  life,"  remarked 
Abraham,  after  satisfying  himself  that  the  man  was 
dead  drunk.     "  But  his  case  must  be  attended  to." 

"You  may  attend  to  him  if  you  want  to,  but  I 
sha'n't,"  said  Nat  Grigsby.     "Come,  let's  go  home." 

"  So  I  say,"  added  David ;  "  it's  too  cold  to  fuss 
about  here.  If  the  fellow  likes  such  a  bed  he  may 
sleep  it  out  for  all  me." 

"  He'll  freeze  to  death  before  morning  if  we  leave 
him  here,"  responded  Abraham. 

"That's  about  all  he's  good  for,"  chimed  in  Nat 
By  this  time  they  had  discovered  that  the  man  was  a 
miserable  drunkard  who  lived  some  miles  away.  "  Come 


WORKING  AND    WINNING.  1 43 

on,  I'm  going  home,  whether  the  old  fellow  freezes  or 
not."     And  Nat  started  on. 

"  Well,  I  sha'n't  go  home  until  I  make  out  what  is 
going  to  become  of  this  chap,"  said  Abraham,  "  It 
would  be  inhuman  to  leave  him  to  freeze  here." 

"  Perhaps  it  would,  and  perhaps  it  wouldn't,"  replied 
David.  "  Nobody  is  any  better  for  his  living,  and  some 
folks  are  worse.  He's  a  good-for-nothing  fellow  any 
way." 

"  That's  no  reason  why  we  should  let  him  die  here 
like  a  dog  or  hog,"  retorted  Abraham  with  some  spirit. 
"  Come,  Dave,  let  that  go,  and  we'll  take  him  over  to 
Dennis'  cabin."  At  this  time  Dennis  Hanks  was  mar- 
ried and  lived  in  a  cabin  a  half  mile  away. 

"  I  think  I  see  myself  tugging  the  miserable  wretch 
a  half  mile  at  this  time  of  night,"  retorted  David 
"  You  may  make  a  fool  of  yourself  over  him  if  you 
want  to,  but  I  am  going  home."  And  David  started 
for  home,  hearing,  as  he  hurried  away,  Abraham  say- 
ing,—  "Go,  then,  you  hard-hearted  fellow." 

Abraham  was  not  more  than  a  minute  in  determin- 
ing what  to  do.  He  put  his  long  strong  arms  around 
the  drunken  man,  raised  him  up,  flung  him  over  his 
shoulder  as  he  would  a  bag  of  corn,  and  started  for 
Dennis  Hanks'    cabin,  where  he  safely  deposited  him. 

"  Look  here,  Dennis,  I've  brought  you  company/' 
said  Abraham,  as  he  laid  down  his  burden.  "  More  of 
a  job  to  carry  him  than  a  log." 

"  Where  did  you  find  that  fellow,  Abe  ? "  inquired 
Dennis,  getting  out  of  bed. 

"In  the  road,  where  he  would  have  died  before 
morning,  if  I'd  left  him  there  " 


144       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  I  know  him  of  old,  not  much  account  any  way,* 
added  Dennis. 

"  Account  enough  to  fix  up  a  little,"  retorted  Abra 
ham.  "  We  ought  to  be  human  beings  so  long  as  we 
pretend  to  be." 

"  Go  ahead,  then,"  said  Dennis,  acquiescing ;  "  see 
how  you  come  out."  And  he  proceeded  to  assist 
Abraham  in  his  merciful  work.  They  built  a  fire, 
warmed  him,  and  Abraham  rubbed  him  until  con- 
sciousness was  restored.  In  fact,  he  remained  all 
night  with  the  intemperate  man,  and  left  him  in  the 
morning  well  satisfied  with  the  part  he  had  played  as 
"good  Samaritan."  Afterwards,  the  wretched  man 
said  to  John  Hanks,  "  It  was  mighty  clever  in  Abe  to 
take  me  to  a  warm  fire  that  cold  night.  Abe's  strength 
and  kinaness  saved  my  life." 


CHAPTER    XL 

UPWARD   AND    ONWARD. 

|HE  brief  remarks  made  about  Abraham  at 
this  time  show  his  standing. 

"He  is  always  ready  to  do  everything  for 
everybody,"  remarked  his  mother. 

"He  is  good-natured  as  the  days  are  long/'  said 
Dennis  Hanks. 

"Always  reading  when  he  is  not  working/  said 
Jcsiah  Crawford. 

"  More  fun  in  him  than  there  is  in  all  the  rest  of  us 
put  together,"  remarked  David  Turnham. 

Such  remarks  as  these  were  common  concerning 
Abraham  Lincoln  from  the  time  he  was  fourteen  years 
of  age.  John  Hanks,  who  went  to  live  with  the  Lincolns, 
as  we  have  said,  when  Abraham  was  fourteen,  says :  — 

"  When  Abe  and  I  returned  to  the  house  from  work,  he 
would  go  to  the  cupboard,  snatch  a  piece  of  corn-bread, 
take  down  a  book,  sit  down  on  a  chair,  cross  his  legs 
as  high  as  his  head,  and  read.  He  and  I  worked  bare- 
footed, grubbed  it,  ploughed,  mowed,  and  cradled  to- 
gether; ploughed  corn,  gathered  it,  and  shucked  corn, 
Abraham  read  constantly  when  he  had  an  opportu- 
nity." 


146       PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Mr.  Lamon  says :  "  Abe  loved  to  lie  under  a  shade* 
tree,  or  up  in  the  loft  of  the  eabin,  and  read,  cipher, 
and  scribble.  At  night,  he  sat  by  the  chimney  "  jamb," 
and  ciphered,  by  the  light  of  the  fire,  on  the  wooden 
fire-shovel.  When  the  shovel  was  fairly  covered,  he 
would  shave  it  off  with  Tom  Lincoln's  drawing-knife, 
and  begin  again.  In  the  day  time,  he  used  boards  for 
the  same  purpose,  out  of  doors,  and  went  through  the 
shaving  process  everlastingly." 

His  mother  says :  "  Abe  read  every  book  he  could  lay 
his  hands  on  ;  and  when  he  came  across  a  passage  that 
struck  him,  he  would  write  it  down  on  boards  if  he  had 
no  paper,  and  keep  it  there  until  he  did  get  paper. 
Then  he  would  re-write  it,  look  at  it,  and  repeat  it. 
He  had  a  copy-book,  a  kind  of  scrap-book,  in  which  he 
put  down  all  things,  and  thus  preserved  them." 

There  is  no  record  of  how  and  where  he  obtained  the 
scrap-book.  The  idea  was  entirely  original  with  him, 
since  he  had  never  heard  of  any  such  device  in  his 
part  of  the  country.  There  is  no  question  that  he 
possessed  a  scrap-book,  and  that  it  became  an  impor- 
tant agent  in  making  him  a  scholar  and  statesman. 
He  copied  into  it  chiefly  from  the  books  he  borrowed, 
thinking  he  would  not  have  the  opportunity  to  see 
them  again.  Books  that  he  owned,  as  well  as  those 
belonging  to  his  parents,  he  marked,  that  he  might 
refer  to  striking  passages  at  his  leisure.  Also,  he 
frequently  wrote  brief  compositions  in  that  scrap- 
book,  improving  his  talent  for  the  art  thereby.  As  an 
invention,  at  that  time,  the  scrap-book  was  worthy  of 
his  genius,  and,  as  a  source  of  mental  improvement, 
its  value  was  never  over-estimated. 


UPWARD  AND   ONWARD.  147 

One  of  the  finest  and  most  touching  tributes  ever 
paid  to  his  memory  was  spoken  by  his  mother  to  Mr. 
Herndon,  and  we  quote  it  here  because  it  had  reference 
to  his  early  life.      She  said  :  — 

"  Abe  was  a  poor  boy,  and  I  can  say  what  scarcely 
one  woman  —  a  mother  —  can  say,  in  a  thousand 
Abe  never  gave  me  a  cross  word  or  look,  and  never 
refused,  in  fact  or  appearance,  to  do  any  thing  I  re- 
quested him.  I  never  gave  him  a  cross  word  in  all 
my  life.  .  .  .  His  mind  and  my  mind — -what  little 
I  had — seemed  to  run  together.  .  .  .  He  was 
here  after  he  was  elected  President."  Here  she 
stopped,  unable  to  proceed  any  further,  and  after  her 
grateful  emotions  had  spent  themselves  in  tears,  she 
proceeded :  "  He  was  dutiful  to  me  always.  I  think 
he  loved  me  truly.  I  had  a  son,  John,  who  was  raised 
with  Abe.  Both  were  good  boys ;  but  I  must  say, 
both  being  now  dead,  that  Abe  was  the  best  boy  I 
ever  saw,  or  ever  expect  to  see.  I  wish  I  had  died 
when  my  husband  died.  I  did  not  want  Abe  to  run 
for  President ,  did  not  want  him  elected ;  was  afraid 
somehow,  —  felt  it  in  my  heart ;  and  when  he  came 
down  to  see  me,  after  he  was  elected  President,  I  felt 
that  something  would  befall  him,  and  that  I  should  see 
him  no  more." 

•  Mr.  Lamon  relates  that,  when  this  interview  closed, 
and  Mr.  Herndon  was  about  to  retire,  Mrs.  Lincoln 
took  one  of  his  hands  in  both  of  hers,  and  wringing 
it,  with  the  tears  streaming  down  her  cheeks,  as  if 
loath  to  separate  from  one  who  knew  her  "Abe"  so 
intimately,  said:  "Good-bj,  my  good  son's  friend 
Farewell." 


I4#        PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


Abraham  tried  his  father  often  by  his  persistent 
efforts  to  gain  time  to  read  and  study,  and  by  his 
disposition  to  turn  night  into  day,  that  he  might  pore 
over  some  engrossing  book,  or  compose  a  "  poem  "  or 
"chronicle"  upon  some  passing  event,  pleasant  or 
otherwise.  He  was  more  tried,  however,  by  Abraham's 
**' preaching  about"  and  "  making  "political  speeches" 
on  stumps,  than  anything ;  for  this  interfered  with 
business.  His  step-sister,  Matilda  Johnson,  says  he 
was  remarkable  for  preaching  and  speech-making.  On 
Monday  mornings,  after  he  had  listened  to  a  sermon, 
he  would  mount  a  stump,  and  deliver  the  sermon, 
which  his  memory  retained  with  wonderful  accuracy. 
In  the  field,  he  often  amused  his  working  companions 
with  a  speech  upon  some  subject  that  was  uppermost ; 
and,  when  he  began  to  orate,  there  was  an  end  of  labor. 
All  hands  gathered  about  him  in  admiration,  and 
cheered  him  on.  Thomas  Lincoln  thought  Abraham 
was  carrying  the  matter  too  far.  But  he  said  nothing, 
especially  authoritative,  until  the  community  was  vis- 
ited  by  a  preacher  of  singular  eccentricities.  He 
bellowed  like  a  bull  of  Bashan  in  the  pulpit,  a  fearful 
nasal  twang  accompanying  his  cracked  voice  ;  ai*d  he 
pounded  the  desk  in  his  excitement,  as  if  determined 
to  reduce  it  to  kindling  wood.  His  performance  was 
fun  for  the  young  people ;  and  Abraham  was  especially 
amused.  His  gift  of  imitation  enabled  him  to  repro- 
duce the  sermon,  with  its  nasal  twang  and  other  oddi- 
ties, so  that  the  eccentricities  of  the  preacher  were 
reproduced  and  re-repeated,  over  and  over,  on  the 
stumps  of  the  field,  and  at  evening  gatherings.  When 
Abraham  began  to  preach  that  sermon,  in  cabin  or 


UPWARD  AND   ONWARD.  I4g 


field,  his  audience  could  attend  t^  nothing  else  until 
the  discourse  was  finished.  The  exercise  of  laughing 
over  it  was  well-nigh  as  exhaustive  and  violent  as  that 
of  chopping.  Even  the  old  people,  who  thought  it  was 
not  quite  right  to  make  so  much  merriment  over  a 
sermon,  could  not  help  laughing  when  Abraham  be- 
came the  eccentric  pulpit  orator.  But  his  father  felt 
obliged  to  interfere  with  this  habit  of  public  speaking. 
It  became  too  much  of  an  interruption  to  necessary 
work. 

"  You  must  stop  it,  Abe.  I  won't  have  it.  You'll 
get  to  liking  fun  more  than  work  ;  guess  you  do  now. 
I've  put  up  with  it  long  enough, —  shan't  any  longer. 
Don't  let  me  have  to  speak  to  you  about  it  again."  So 
Mr.  Lincoln  interrupted  Abraham's  practice  of  stump- 
speaking,  in  his  irritation  manifesting  considerable 
feeling  on  the  subject. 

Yet  there  is  no  doubt  that  Mr.  Lincoln  was  proud 
of  the  ability  of  his  son,  and,  at  heart,  enjoyed  his  pre- 
cocity. In  his  ignorance,  he  might  have  feared  that 
his  habit  of  speech-making  would  make  him  lazy  or 
shiftless.  Whether  he  did  or  not,  Abraham  evidently 
laid  the  foundation  of  his  future  greatness  as  an  orator 
and  debater  in  those  remarkable  days  of  his  youth. 
A  better  practice  to  discipline  him  for  public  service 
could  not  have  engaged  his  attention.  The  pioneer 
boy  was  unconsciously  schooling  himself  for  the  highest 
position  in  the  land. 

Abraham  worked  often  for  William  Wood,  who  lived 
one  mile  and  a  half  away.  Mr.  Lincoln  worked  there, 
also,  as  a  carpenter,  whenever  labor  in  his  line  wag 
demanded.     Abraham  loved  to  work  for  Mr.  Wood,  foi 


<5°       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

he  took  two  papers,  which  the  boy  could  read  through 
and  through.  One  of  them  was  a  temperance  paper, 
and  its  contents  interested  him  more  even  than  the 
political  paper. 

"I  did  not  know  that  a  paper  like  this  was  ever 
printed,,,  he  said  to  Mr.  Wood,  who  was  one  of  the 
most  intelligent  and  well  posted  men  of  Spencer 
County.     "It's  true,  every  word  of  it." 

"Of  course  it  is,"  replied  Mr.  Wood.  "Rum  is 
well  enough  in  its  place,  but  there's  no  reason  in  men 
making  such  beasts  of  themselves  as  many  do  about 
here." 

"  I  shouldn't  care  if  the  whole  of  it  was  at  the  bottom 
of  the  Ohio  River,  where  most  of  my  father's  whiskey 
went,"  continued  Abraham.  "  It  does  a  great  sight 
more  evil  than  good  any  day." 

"  Good !  It  would  puzzle  most  any  one  to  tell  what 
good  whiskey  does,"  responded  Mr.  Wood.  "  The  evil 
it  does  is  known  to  everybody ;  we  can  see  that  every- 
where. It  adds  very  much  to  the  hardships  of  life  in 
this  part  of  the  country." 

Abraham  became  so  enthusiastic  over  the  tern- 
perance  paper  and  the  cause  which  it  represented, 
that  he  wrote  a  long  composition  on  the  subject  of 
"  Temperance/'  and  submitted  it  to  Mr.  Wood's  ex* 
amination. 

"Did  you  write  all  this  yourself,  Abe?"  remarked 
Mr.  Wood,  before  reading  it,  but  noticing  its  length. 

"  Every  word  of  it ;  and  I  want  you  to  read  it  over, 
and  tell  me  what  you  think  about  it." 

"I  will  read  it  to-night  without  fail,"  and  Mr.  Wood 
did  read  it.     His  opinion  of  it  is  learned  from  the  fact, 


UPWARD  AND   ONWARD.  151 


that  he  remarked  to  a  Baptist  minister  who  called  at 
his  house  :  — 

"  I  have  here  a  composition  on  Temperance,  written 
by  Abe  Lincoln,  and  I  think  it  is  a  wonderful  produc- 
tion for  such  a  boy  to  write.  I  want  you  should  reaa 
it,  and  see  if  you  do  not  agree  with  me." 

"  I  should  be  glad  to  read  it,  here  and  now,"  replies 
the  minister.  "  I'm  glad  that  Abe  is  writing  on  that 
subject/'  And  he  applied  himself  to  reading  the  com- 
position at  once. 

"  I  agree  with  you  entirely,"  said  the  minister,  com 
pleting  the  reading;"  it  is  a  remarkable  production 
for  such  a  boy." 

"  I  would  like  to  see  it  printed  in  this  temperance 
paper,"  continued  Mr.  Wood,  holding  the  paper  up. 

"It  is  worthy  of  a  place  in  it,"  added  the  minister. 

"Thsy  publish  articles  that  are  not  half  as  good," 
responded  Mr.  Wood.  "  You  can  get  this  composition 
to  the  editor ;  it  is  right  in  your  way." 

"Yes,  I  can  take  it  there,  and  should  be  glad  to 
do  it." 

"Well,  you  take  it,  and  I'll  make  it  right  with  Abe." 

"  He  won't  have  any  objection,  if  he  is  like  most 
boys,"  remarked  the  minister.  "  He'll  be  a  little  proud 
to  appear  in  print." 

The  minister  took  the  article  along  with  him,  and, 
subsequently,  it  appeared  in  the  columns  of  the  paper. 
Mr.  Wood  read  it  over  again  in  print,  and  remarked ; 
"It  excels  anything  there  is  in  the  paper."  Abra- 
ham was  both  gratified  and  encouraged  by  the  publi 
cation  of  his  article.  The  paper  was  lent  to  the 
families  in   the  neighborhood,  after  they  heard  that 


152        PIONEER   HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 


Abraham  was  a  writer  for  its  columns,  and  the  univer- 
sal verdict  was,  "a  remarkable  composition  for  a  boy." 

"Can't  you  write  on  politics,  Abe  ? "  said  Mr.  Wood 
to  him,  one  day. 

"  Yes,  sir ;  I  have  written  some  pieces  on  that 
subject. " 

"Well,  I  mean  an  article  to  be  printed  in  some 
political  paper." 

"  I  can  try/'  continued  Abraham,  elated  with  the 
idea  of  writing  for  a  political  paper.  "What  shall  I 
write  about  ?" 

Mr.  Wood  made  some  suggestions  about  the  subject ; 
and,  in  the  course  of  a  week,  Abraham  brought  him 
the  article.  Mr.  Wood  remembers  enough  of  it  to 
furnish  the  drift  of  the  composition  :  — 

"That  the  American  Government  is  the  best  form  of 
government  for  an  intelligent  people  ;  that  it  cught  to 
be  sound,  and  preserved  forever ;  that  general  educa 
tion  should  be  fostered  and  carried  all  over  the  country; 
that  the  Constitution  should  be  saved,  the  Union  per- 
petuated,  and  the  laws  revered,  respected,  and  en- 
forced/' 

Mr.  Wood  was  even  more  gratified  and  surprised  on 
reading  this  article  than  he  was  on  reading  the  other. 
We  think  that  the  composition  is  more  remarkable  now 
than  it  was  then,  on  account  of  subsequent  events. 
For  it  surely  contained  the  gist  of  Abraham  Lincoln's 
inaugural  address  when  he  became  President.  On  that 
occasion  he  said  :  — 

"  I  hold,  that,  in  the  contemplation  of  universal  law 
and  of  the  Constitution,  the  union  of  these  States  is 
perpetual.     Perpetuity  is  implied,  if  not  expressed,  in 


UPWARD  AND   ONWARD.  1 53 

the  fundamental  law  of  all  national  governments. 
Continue  to  execute  all  the  express  provisions  of  our 
national  Constitution,  and  the  Union  will  endure  for 
ever.  .  .  I  consider  that  in  view  of  the  Constitution 
and  the  laws,  the  Union  is  unbroken  ;  and  to  the  extent 
of  my  ability,  I  shall  take  care,  as  the  Constitution 
itself  expressly  enjoins  upon  me,  that  the  laws  of  the 
'Union  shall  be  faithfully  executed." 

How  wonderful  that  the  pioneer  boy  who  wrote  the 
aforesaid  article  for  a  political  paper  should  become 
President  of  the  United  States  thirty-three  years  there- 
after, and  reiterate  in  his  inaugural  address  the  same 
sentiments,  when  the  enemies  of  the  country  were  seek- 
ing to  overthrow  the  Constitution,  abrogate  its  laws, 
and  sever  the  Union  !     Truly 

"  There's  a  divinity  that  shapes  our  ends, 
Rough-hew  them  how  we  will." 

A  lawyer,  by  the  name  of  Pritchard,  was  passing  by 
Mr.  Wood's  house,  when  the  political  article  in  question 
was  in  his  hands.     Mr.  Wood  called  him  in,  remarking, 

"  I  want  you  should  read  an  article  I  have  here,  and 
see  what  you  think  of  it."  He  did  not  disclose  who 
was  the  author  of  it. 

"Your  own  ?"  inquired  Pritchard. 

"That's  no  matter  ;  read  it." 

"  I  will,  if  that  is  your  wish  ; "  and  Pritchard  sat  down 
to  its  perusal.  As  he  read  the  last  sentence,  he  re- 
marked, in  a  very  enthusiastic  way,  — 

"  It  can't  be  beat.     Is  it  yours  ? " 

"No;  it  is  not  mine.  Tom  Lincoln's  son,  Abe, 
wrote  it,  and  I  think  it  is  wonderful  for  a  boy." 


TX4       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"More  than  that,"  added  Pritchard,  still  more  in. 
terested  when  he  learned  that  a  boy  wrote  it.  "  Let 
me  have  it  to  publish  in  our  paper,"  meaning  the  paper 
of  his  section. 

"  That's  what  it  was  written  for,  — to  be  published  in 
some  political  paper,"  answered  Mr.  Wood.  "An 
article  of  Abe's  was  published  in  my  temperance  paper 
not  long  ago,  and  it  was  the  best  thing  it  had,  Abe  is 
a  great  temperance  boy." 

The  last  remark  makes  it  necessary  to  interject  a 
paragraph  here.  We  have  undoubted  testimony  that 
Abraham  was  the  only  person  in  that  region,  at 
that  time,  who  refused  on  all  occasions  to  partake  of 
intoxicating  liquors.  His  opposition  to  the  practice 
was  so  well  known,  that,  at  house-raisings,  log-rollings, 
huskings,  and  parties,  it  was  not  expected  that  he  would 
touch  anything  which  would  intoxicate.  It  was  his 
decided  stand  against  intoxicants  that  caused  his  mother 
to  say,  "  I  think  Abe  carries  his  temperance  notions  to 
extremes." 

It  was  arranged  that  Pritchard  should  take  the  article 
to  the  editor  of  a  political  paper  for  publication  ;  and, 
in  due  time,  it  appeared,  much  to  the  satisfaction  of 
Mr.  Wood,  the  joy  of  Abraham,  and  the  pride  of  the 
neighborhood.  Abraham  wrote  other  articles  which  he 
submitted  to  the  examination  of  Mr.  Wood ;  and  the 
exercise  of  writing  composition  became  to  him  an 
excellent  discipline,  and  did  much  to  help  him  upward 
and  onward. 

A  Mr.  Richardson,  who  lived  in  the  vicinity  at  that 
time,  says : 

"Abe  was  the  best  penman  in  the  neighborhood 


UPWARD  AND   ONWARD.  1 55 

One  day,  while  he  was  on  a  visit  to  my  mother's,  I  asked 
him  to  write  some  original  copies  for  me.  He  very 
willingly  consented.  He  wrote  several  of  them,  but  one 
of  them  I  have  never  forgotten,  although  a  boy  at  the 
time.     It  was  this  : — 

1  Good  boys,  who  to  their  books  apply, 
Will  all  be  great  men  by  and  by.' " 

Abraham  came  into  the  possession  of  a  copy-book 
(not  the  scrap-book  spoken  of)  in  which  he  wrote  orig- 
inal copies.     Here  is  one  :  — 

"  Abraham  Lincoln,  his  hand  and  pen  ; 
He  will  be  good,  but  God  knows  when." 

In  the  same  book  he  wrote  the  following : — 

*  Time  !  what  an  empty  vapor  'tis ! 

And  days,  how  swift  they  are ! 
Swift  as  an  Indian  arrow, 

Fly  on  like  a  shooting- star, 
The  present  moment  just  is  here, 

Then  slides  away  in  haste, 
That  we  can  never  say  they're  ours, 

But  only  say  they're  past." 

Many  such  "  pieces,"  in  poetry  and  prose,  he  wrote^ 
exhibiting  thought,  genius,  noble  aspirations,  and 
marked  talents. 

We  have  intimated  that  Abraham's  love  of  books 
prevented  his  becoming  a  hunter.  He  could  not  spare 
the  time.  If  he  were  not  at  work,  he  had  a  book  in 
his  hand.  Other  boys  became  hunters.  It  was  neces- 
sary for  them  to  be  in  order  to  procure  food  and  a 
livelihood.     Dennis  Hanks  says,  "  When  we  had  spare 


156       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

time  we  picked  up  the  rifle,  and  brought  in  a  fine  deei 
or  turkey ;  and  in  the  winter-time  we  went  coon-hunt 
mg,  for  coon-skins  were  considered  legal  tender,  and 
deerskins  and  hams."  The  woods  were  full  of  rabbits, 
partridges,  squirrels,  and  other  game,  but  these  were 
not  shot  much  for  food.  Deer  and  turkeys  were  more 
desirable  for  the  larder.  The  smaller  game  mentioned 
was  so  plenty,  that  the  settlers  resorted  to  various 
devices  to  destroy  them.  They  devastated  gardens  and 
grain-fields,  and  the  pioneers  made  war  upon  them  as  a 
nuisance. 

Bears,  wild-cats,  and  panthers,  also,  were  quite  numer- 
ous, and  these  were  shot  in  self-defence.  The  scream 
of  the  latter  often  filled  the  forest  with  terror  at  night, 
in  Abraham's  early  life.  Yet,  our  hero  never  did  much 
at  hunting.  A  book,  instead  of  a  gun,  captivated  his 
heart,  and  he  read  and  studied  when  other  boys  hunted 
and  had  rare  sport.  We  do  not  mean  that  he  never 
engaged  in  this  pastime  ;  for  he  did  occasionally  accom- 
pany companions  upon  hunting  excursions.  But,  com- 
pared with  the  average  boy  of  the  county,  he  was  not  a 
hunter. 

Abraham  enjoyed  certain  "plays"  and  games  more 
than  he  did  hunting.  His  social  qualities  and  genuine 
humor  fitted  him  for  this  sphere  more  than  for  the 
other.  These  "plays,"  without  Abraham,  were  the 
play  of  Hamlet  with  Hamlet  left  out.  He  made  things 
lively  by  his  wit  and  geniality.  Exactly  what  the 
•'  plays  "  were,  we  cannot  affirm :  we  can  only  give  their 
names  as  furnished  by  Dennis  Hanks.  "  Throwing  the 
mall,"  "cat,"  "four-corner  bull-pen,"  "hopping  and 
half-hammon,"  and  "  Sister  Feby,"  an  evening  game 


UPWARD  AND  ONWARD.  15? 

Whatever  these  "plays"  were,  Abraham  was  "a  bright 
particular  star"  in  them,  whenever  and  wherever  his 
presence  could  be  secured. 

From  the  time  Abraham  was  eighteen  years  of  age 
his  physical  strength  was  remarkable.  Some  of  the 
stories  about  his  strength,  told  by  the  neighbors,  are 
almost  incredible.  He  was  not  only  a  giant  in  stature, 
but  a  giant  in  strength.  Observers  looked  on  amazed 
at  the  exhibition.  Richardson,  a  neighbor,  declares 
that  he  could  carry  a  load  to  which  the  strength  of 
three  ordinary  men  would  scarcely  be  equal.  He 
saw  him  quietly  pick  up  and  walk  away  with  "a  chicken- 
house,  made  of  poles  pinned  together,  and  covered,  that 
weighed  at  least  six  hundred,  if  not  much  more."  At 
another  time,  the  Richardsons  were  building  a  corn^ 
crib;  Abe  was  there;  and,  seeing  three  or  four  men 
preparing  "sticks"  upon  which  to  carry  some  huge 
posts,  he  relieved  them  of  all  further  trouble  by  shoulder- 
ing the  posts,  single-handed,  and  walking  away  with 
them  to  the  place  where  they  were  wanted.  "  He  could 
strike  with  a  mall,"  says  old  Mr.  Wood,  "a  heavier 
blow  than  any  man.  ...  He  could  sink  an  axe  deeper 
into  the  wood  than  any  man  I  ever  saw."*  Wrestling 
was  a  common  and  popular  sport  among  pioneers,  and 
here  Abraham  excelled  all  his  companions.  The  sequel 
will  show  how  his  remarkable  physical  strength  aided 
him  in  the  labors,  burdens,  trials,  and  responsibilities 
of  his  public  life. 

*  Lamon's  Life  of  Lincoln,  p.  52. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

ON  THE   FLAT-BOAT. 

|N  the  first  of  March,  1828,  Abraham  went 
to  work  for  old  Mr.  Gentry,  the  proprietor 
of  Gentryville.  Here,  again,  he  was  a  "man- 
of-all-work,"  doing  whatsoever  his  employer 
found  for  him  to  do.  Mr.  Gentry  had  a  son  by  the 
name  of  Allen,  with  whom  Abraham  worked.  He  was 
a  little  older  than  Abraham,  and  a  suitable  companion 
for  him. 

"How  would  you  like  to  run  a  flat-boat  to  New 
Orleans,  Abe?,,  said  Mr.  Gentry  to  him,  early  in  April. 
"I  believe  you  are  used  to  boating." 

"  I  know  something  about  it,"  Abraham  replied,  "  I 
should  like  to' go  to  New  Orleans.     How  far  is  it?" 

"  About  eighteen  hundred  miles.  I'm  thinking  of 
letting  Allen  take  a  trip  there  if  you  will  go  with 
him." 

«How  soon?" 

•'  Just  as  soon  as  you  can  get  ready.  I  have  a  load 
of  bacon  and  other  produce  on  hand  now.  It's  some 
work  to  get  ready." 

"  Well,  I'll  be  ready  any  time  you  say,  if  father  don't 
object,  and  I  don't  think  he  will,"  added  Abraham. 


ON  THE  FLAT-BOAT.  1 59 

"  He  won't  care  if  I  pay  you  well  for  it,"  responded 
Mr  Gentry.  "  I  shall  give  you  eight  dollars  a  month, 
and  pay  your  passage  home  on  a  steamer.  You  and 
Allen  together  can  manage  such  a  trip  well.,, 

Abraham's  service  of  four  or  five  weeks  had  satis 
fied  Mr.  Gentry  that  he  was  just  the  hand  to  send 
on  a  trading  expedition  to  New  Orleans.  His  tact, 
strength  and  fidelity  were  three  essential  requisites  to 
ensure  a  successful  expedition.  Flat-boating  on  the 
Western  waters,  at  that  time,  was  an  exciting  and 
perilous  business ;  and  some  account  of  it  here  will 
reflect  light  upon  Abraham's  venture. 

For  some  years  there  had  been  a  class  of  boat- 
men, fearless,  hardy,  athletic  men,  who  "  traversed 
the  longest  rivers,  penetrated  the  most  remote  wil- 
derness upon  their  watery  routes,  and  kept  up  a 
trade  and  irtercourse  between  the  most  distant 
points." 

They  were  exposed  to  great  perils,  and  were  out 
shelterless  in  all  kinds  of  weather.  With  no  bed  but 
the  deck  of  their  boats  on  which  to  lie  at  night,  and  no 
covering  but  a  blanket,  they  spent  months  and  years 
of  their  existence. 

It  was  on  such  boats  that  the  rich  cargoes  ascend- 
ing the  Mississippi  were  carried.  By  human  labor 
they  were  propelled  against  the  strong  current  for 
nearly  two  thousand  miles  ;  and  it  was  a  labor  that 
required  great  muscular  strength  and  remarkable 
powers  of  endurance.  The  result  was  that  a  class  of 
men  were  trained  in  this  business,  of  unusual  courage, 
and  proud  only  of  their  ability  to  breast  storms  and 
endure  hardships. 


160       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

In  addition  to  this  class,  whose  life-business  it  was 
to  propel  these  Western  boats,  there  were  those  who 
occasionally  made  a  trip  to  New  Orleans  to  sell  their 
stores.  Sometimes  several  farmers,  or  other  persons, 
would  club  together  and  make  out  a  cargo,  and  send  it 
down  to  New  Orleans  ;  and  sometimes  one  alone 
would  do  the  same.  This  was  the  case  with  Mr.  Gen 
try.  He  had  a  quantity  of  stores  suited  to  meet  the 
wants  of  the  sugar  plantations  in  Louisiana,  and  he 
wanted  to  convert  them  into  cash.  Money  was  very 
scarce,  and  many  families,  like  that  of  Mr.  Lincoln 
saw  but  little.  What  was  in  circulation  was  brought 
into  the  Western  country  by  people  moving  thither 
from  the  East,  or  was  obtained,  as  Mr.  Gentry  pro- 
posed to  obtain  some,  by  sending  a  boat-load  of  stores 
to  New  Orleans. 

Abraham  consulted  his  father,  who  readily  consented. 
His  mother  remarked  : — 

"  Eighteen  hundred  miles  is  rather  of  a  long  trip 
for  a  fellow  who  hasn't  seen  more  of  the  world  than 
you  have,  Abe." 

"  None  too  long,  mother.  I  shall  see  some  of  the 
world  now  if  I  never  have  before." 

"  And  perhaps  see  the  bottom  of  the  Mississippi/1 
Suggested  his  mother. 

"  I'm  not  afraid  of  that." 

11  But  many  have  lost  their  lives  in  this  way,  and 
men  who  have  been  used  to  the  business,  too." 

"That's  no  sign  I  shall." 

"It's  no  sign  you  won't." 

"But  I  shan't  borrow  any  trouble  about  it" 

"  I  don't  ask  you  to  do  that ;  but  it's  worth  while  to 
think  of  these  things." 


ON  THE  FLAT-BOAT.  l6l 


"  If  you  don't  wan't  I  should  go,  I  will  give  it  up 
now/'  Abraham  inferred  from  his  mother's  manner 
of  speaking,  that  she  was  unwilling  he  should  go. 

"  I  do  want  you  should  go.  I  was  only  telling  some 
of  my  thoughts.     I  can't  help  thinking." 

;<  It  may  be  the  best  thing  for  me  that  I  ever  did," 
suggested  Abraham. 

"  Yes,  if  no  accident  happens  to  you,  I  have  no 
doubt  it  will  be  a  real  good  school  for  you.  But  it's  a 
long  ways  to  go,  and  a  long  time  for  you  to  be  gone." 

"  But  I  have  got  to  go  away  some  time,  and  I  may 
as  well  begin  now." 

"  Very  true  ;  but  that  makes  it  no  easier  for  me  to 
have  you  go.  But  it  don't  do  any  good  to  talk  about 
it  now." 

Preparations  were  made  at  once  for  the  voyage. 
A  boat  was  provided  at  Gentry's  Landing,  which  was 
at  Rockport,  on  the  Ohio  River,  and  Abraham  and 
Allen  proceeded  to  load  the  cargo.  Here  Abraham 
met  with  his  old  schoolmate,  Miss  Roby,  whom  he 
assisted,  at  Crawford's  school,  to  spell  defied  correctly. 
She  had  grown  into  a  winsome  girl ;  at  least  Allen 
Gentry  thought  so  ;  for  he  afterwards  courted  and 
married  her.  At  the  close  of  one  day  an  incident 
occurred  that  shows  how  Abraham  was  wont  to  pick 
up  knowledge.  He  was  sitting  with  Miss  Roby  on  the 
boat,  when  she  remarked  :  — 

"The  sun  is  going  down." 

"No  ;  it  isn't,"  Abraham  replied  naively. 

"You've  lost  your  sight,  then,"  suggested  the  girl, 
at  the  same  time  anticipating  that  Abraham  was  in> 
dulging  in  some  roguery. 


162       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

u  I  can  see  as  well  as  you  can/'  responded  Abraham, 
"and  I  say,  honestly,  the  sun  is  not  going  down,  and 
what  is  more,  it  never  will  go  down." 

"  Wait  and  see,"  continued  Miss  Roby,  laughing. 

"  It  will  seem  to  go  down,"  added  Abraham,  in  an 
explanatory  way. 

"  I  rather  think  it  will,"  Miss  Roby  answered 
curtly. 

"  We  go  down,  not  the  sun,"  Abraham  continued 
"The  sun  stands  still." 

"  It  moves  enough  for  me,"  interrupted  Miss  Roby 

Abraham  went  on  to  explain  :  — 

"  You  see  the  earth  turns  from  west  to  east,  and  the 
revolution  of  the  earth  carries  us  under,  as  it  were ; 
we  do  the  sinking,  as  you  call  it.  The  sun  does  not 
really  set ;  it  only  appears  to." 

"  Abe !  what  a  fool  you  are ! "  exclaimed  the  sur- 
prised girl,  who  began  to  think  that  too  much  learning 
had  made  her  friend  mad. 

Forty  years  afterwards,  Miss  Roby,  who  became 
Mrs.  Gentry,  said  :  — 

"  Now  I  know  that  I  was  the  fool,  not  Lincoln.  I 
am  now  thoroughly  satisfied  that  Abe  knew  the  gen- 
eral laws  of  astronomy  and  the  movements  of  the 
heavenly  bodies.  He  was  better  read  then  than  the 
world  knows,  or  is  likely  to  know  exactly.  No  man 
could  talk  to  me  that  night  as  he  did  unless  he  had 
known  something  of  geography  as  well  as  astronomy. 
He  often  and  often  commented  or  talked  to  me  about 
what  he  had  read,  —  seemed  to  read  ic  out  of  the  book 
as  he  went  along,  —  did  so  to  others.  He  was  the 
learned  boy  among  us  unlearned  folks.     He  took  great 


ON  THE  FLAT-BOAT.  1 63 

pains  lo  explain,  and  could  do  it  so  simply.     He  was 
diffident  then,  too." 

To  return  to  the  trip  to  New  Orleans.  As  soon 
as  the  cargo  was  loaded,  the  two  boys  started  upon 
their  voyage,  Abraham  serving  as  "  bow-hand,  to  work 
the  front  oars."  It  was  a  very  important  event  in  the 
life  of  our  young  friend,  and  his  heart  was  greatly 
elated.  He  was  floating  out  into  the  broad  world  now 
His  young  eyes  would  behold  its  sights  and  scenes  for 
the  first  time.  It  is  not  strange  that  he  pushed  out 
into  the  Ohio  with  a  glad  heart,  and  moved  down  to- 
wards the  "  father  of  waters  "  with  such  anticipation 
as  never  fired  his  breast  before. 

"  I  say,  Abe,  how  many  times  are  you  going  to  upset 
before  reaching  the  Mississippi  ? "  asked  Allen. 

"  I  hardly  think  we  shall  do  it  more  than  once," 
answered  Abraham,  "  unless  you  have  a  better  faculty 
than  I  have  for  loading  up  again  in  the  water." 

"  I  didn't  think  of  that ;  it  would  be  a  hard  matter 
to  reload  at  the  bottom  of  the  river." 

"  Yes  ;  and  we  must  look  out  for  accidents,  or  your 
father  will  wish  he  had  never  sent  us.  I  hope  we 
shall  make  a  capital  thing  of  it." 

"  I  hope  so  too,  or  we  shall  never  have  another  such 
a  chance.  The  old  man  never  would  have  sent  me 
if  it  had  n't  been  for  you,  Abe." 

" How  so?" 

"Because  he  thinks  you  can  do  most  anything 
that's  possible,  and  so  he  was  willing  to  risk  me  and 
all  the  cargo  with  you." 

44  Pshaw !     You  are  fooling  now." 

*  No  such  thing  ;  it's  the  living  truth.     I  expect  hd 


104       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

thought  that  you  could  keep  me  and  the  cargo  from 
sinking  if  we  did  upset." 

"  Well,  my  mother  rather  expects  the  opposite,  I 
judge  by  her  talk,"  replied  Abraham.  "  She  thinks  it  is 
rather  of  a  risky  piece  of  business  to  send  us  on  such 
a  trip." 

"I  'spose  'tis,"  was  Allen's  thoughtful  reply;  "and 
it  stands  us  in  hand  to  do  the  very  best  we  can.'' 

It  must  suffice  to  say  that  their  trip  proved  to  be  a 
pleasant  one.  Many  incidents  occurred  which  we 
cannot  relate  here,  nor  is  it  necessary  for  our  purpose. 
They  lived  upon  the  flat-boat,  of  course.  At  night 
they  drew  it  up  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  in  some 
favorable  spot,  and  tied  it  safely ;  then  laid  down  or 
their  "running  board,"  as  a  flat-boat  was  sometime* 
called,  to  sleep.  They  had  no  bed  and  nothing  but 
a  blanket  to  cover  them.  True,  this  was  not  so  great 
a  change  for  boys  who  were  reared  in  the  wilderness, 
as  it  would  be  for  boys  of  this  day  who  are  used  to  the 
comforts  and  conveniences  of  affluent  homes.  Still  it 
was  a  change,  and  many  of  their  nights  were  extremely 
lonely. 

Their  voyage  was  not  monotonous.  The  scenery 
was  continually  changing,  and  they  frequently  passed 
other  boats  with  their  merry  crews,  and  held  conver 
sations  with  people  who  flocked  to  the  banks  of  the 
river  from  adjacent  villages.  "  Where  are  you  from  ? " 
H  Where  are  you  bound  ? "  "  What  are  you  loaded 
with?"  were  questions  that  they  frequently  had  to 
answer. 

The  days  were  not  all  sunshine.  Heavy  storms 
Bometimes  descended  upon  them,  and  they  had  to 


ON  THE  FLAT-BOAT.  1 6$ 

exert  themselves  to  the  utmost  to  keep  their  little 
craft  right  side  up.  Day  after  day  they  were  drenched 
with  rain,  and  still  they  must  keep  on  the  voyage. 
Violent  storms  sometimes  raged  at  night,  the  wind 
blowing  almost  a  hurricane,  and  the  rain  pouring  down 
in  torrents,  and  still  there  was  no  alternative,  - —  they 
must  make  their  bed  on  their  little  boat  and  take  the 
pelting  of  the  storm.  Those  were  times  that  tried 
their  spirit,  and  yet  they  had  no  complaints  to  utter 
Never  for  a  moment  did  Abraham  wish  he  had  not 
undertaken  the  voyage.  The  object  of  his  expedition 
had  taken  complete  possession  of  his  soul. 

At  Madame  Bushane's  plantation,  six  miles  below 
Baton  Rouge,  they  had  an  adventure  that  is  worthy  ot 
rehearsal  here.  The  boat  was  tied  up,  and  the  boys 
were  fast  asleep  in  the  stern  when  footsteps  on  board 
awoke  them.  After  listening  a  moment,  Abraham 
whispered : 

"  Foul  play,  Allen !  A  gang  of  niggers  come  to 
rob  us ! " 

Thinking  to  frighten  them  away,  Allen  shouted, 
•'  Bring  the  guns,  Abe,  shoot  "em." 

But  the  negroes  did  not  flee,  and  the  silence  was  as 
oppressive  as  the  darkness. 

"Trouble  for  us,"  said  Abraham  in  a  low  tone, 
as  he  sprung  to  his  feet  and  put  his  hand  upon  a 
billet  of  wood.  "  We  must  fight  for  our  lives. 
Come." 

Waiting  arid  listening  again  for  a  moment,  and  hear- 
ing nothing,  Abraham  cried  out : 

"  Who's  there  ? "     No  response. 

u  Who's  there?'9  he  called  w;th  more  emphasis. 


166       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

The  voices  of  several  negroes,  in  threatening  tones, 
responded. 

"  What  are  you  here  for,  you  rascals  ? "  thundered 
Abraham.  "  Be  off  with  yourselves,  or  we'll  throw  you 
into  the  river.1 '  And  he  dashed  after  them  in  the. 
darkness,  followed  by  Allen.  The  negroes  stood  their 
ground,  armed  with  cudgels,  and  a  fearful  battle  began 
at  once. 

"  Kill  them ! "  shouted  Abraham  to  Allen.  "  They 
mean  to  kill  us.  Knock  the  scoundrels  into  the 
water/' 

And  the  clubs  flew,  and  heavy  blows  were  dealt 
back  and  forth,  until  the  contest  became  so  close  and 
hot  that  clubs  were  useless,  and  a  hand-to-hand  fight 
was  inevitable.  For  ten  minutes  or  more  the  conflict 
raged,  spattering  the  deck  with  blood,  and  threatening 
the  saddest  results.  At  length,  however,  Abraham 
threw  one  of  the  number  into  the  river,  when  the 
others  leaped  from  the  boat  upon  the  shore. 

"  Let's  after  them ! "  shouted  Abraham,  so  thoroughly 
aroused  and  excited  as  to  banish  all  fear.  "  Show  them 
no  quarter." 

And  the  boys  pursued  them  with  their  clubs  for  half 
a  mile,  yelling  at  such  a  rate  that  the  negroes  thought, 
no  doubt,  that  a  half  score  of  boatmen  were  after  them. 
They  were  Madame  Bushane's  slaves,  seeking  plunder 
on  the  boat,  and  they  were  thoroughly  terrified.  They 
had  not  counted  upon  such  a  belligerent  reception. 
Abraham  and  Allen  saw  at  once  that  it  was  a  case  of 
life  and  death,  and  therefore  they  fought  with  despera- 
tion. The  negroes  left  some  of  their  best  blood  on 
deck,  and  it  was  mingled  with  that  of  our  two  young 


ON  THE  FLAT-BOAT:  167 

boatmen.  For  they  received  blows  well  nigh  as  hard 
as  those  they  gave,  and  their  blood  told  of  their 
wounds.  Abraham  received  a  blow  over  his  right  eye, 
the  scar  of  which  he  carried  through  life. 

"We  must  get  the  boat  off  now  as  quick  as  pos- 
sible/' said  Allen,  as  they  returned  from  the  pursuit 
"  The  scamps  may  come  back  with  twice  the  num- 
ber/' 

"  I  was  just  thinking  of  that,"  replied  Abraham, 
"Jump  aboard,  and  I  will  untie  the  boat.  We  must 
lose  no  time." 

In  a  minute  Allen  was  aboard,  and  scarcely  another 
minute  had  passed  before  Abraham  followed  him,  hav 
ing  loosed  the  boat. 

"  We  are  safe  now,  if  the  whole  plantation  comes," 
said  Allen,  as  they  shoved  off  into  the  stream. 

"  We  sha'n't  need  to  go  far,"  added  Abraham.  "  Only 
change  our  position,  and  we  are  safe." 

"  That  may  be,  but  I  think  I  shall  sleep  with  my 
eyes  open  the  rest  of  the  night." 

"  And  I  will  keep  you  company,"  responded  Abra- 
ham. "The  next  time  I  come  to  New  Orleans,  I  shall 
come  armed.  This  going  to  war  without  a  gun  is  not 
quite  the  thing." 

"  I  wish  we  had  been  armed,"  said  Allen.  "  Would  n't 
we  have  made  the  feathers  fly  ? " 

"The  wool,  you  mean,"  replied  Abraham,  jocosely., 
He  had  become  as  cool  as  if  nothing  had  happened. 

"They  meant  to  kill  us." 

"  Of  course  they  did.  It  would  n't  have  done  for 
them  to  rob  us,  and  leave  us  to  tell  the  story  to  their 
master.     But  they  might  have  made  way  with  us,  and 


1 68       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

robbed  and  sunk  the  boat,  and  nobody  been  any  the 
wiser  for  it." 

"They  are  no  fools,  if  they  be  niggers." 

"  No ;  but  after  all  they  are  not  so  much  to  blame," 
added  Abraham.  "  Slavery  has  robbed  them  of  every- 
thing, and  so  I  s'pose  they  think  it  is  fair  play  to  take 
what  they  can  get." 

We  shall  only  add  that  the  voyage  was  continued  to 
New  Orleans,  and  the  cargo  of  bacon  and  other  produce 
disposed  of  to  advantage.  The  boys  returned  to  In 
diana  on  the  deck  of  a  steamer,  according  to  Mr. 
Gentry's  arrangement  before  they  started. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact,  that  Abraham,  who  fought 
the  slaves  to  save  his  life,  should  become  their  emanci- 
pator, as  we  shall  discover,  thirty-five  years  thereafter ( 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

SUNDRY   INCIDENTS. 

|HERE  is  very  satisfactory  evidence  that 
Abraham  went  on  a  trading  trip  for  his 
father  before  he  served  Mr.  Gentry,  and 
that  he  built  a  boat  himself  for  the  expedi- 
tion. For  Mr.  Carpenter,  the  painter,  in  his  "  Six 
Months  in  the  White  House,"  has  the  following  from 
Mr.  Lincoln's  lips,  related  to  show  how  he  came 
into  possession  of  the  first  dollar  he  could  call  his 
own  :  — 

In  the  Executive  Chamber,  one  evening,  there 
were  present  a  number  of  gentlemen,  among  them 
Mr.  Seward. 

A  point  in  the  conversation  suggesting  the  thought, 
the  President  said  :  "  Seward,  you  never  heard,  did 
you,  how  I  earned  my  first  dollar?  "  "No,"  rejoined 
Mr.  Seward.  "Well,"  continued  Mr.  Lincoln,  "  I  was 
about  eighteen  years  of  age.  I  belonged,  you  know, 
to  what  they  call  down  South,  the  '  scrubs ; '  people 
who  do  not  own  slaves  are  nobody  there.  But  we 
had  succeeded  in  raising,  chiefly  by  my  labor,  suffi- 
cient produce,  as  I  thought,  to  justify  me  in  taking  it 
down  the  river  to  sell. 


170       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

"  After  much  persuasion,  I  got  the  consent  of 
mother  to  go,  and  constructed  a  little  flat-boat,  large 
enough  to  take  a  barrel  or  two  of  things  that  we  had 
gathered,  with  myself  and  little  bundle,  down  to  New 
Orleans.  A  steamer  was  coming  down  the  river.  We 
have,  you  know,  no  wharves  on  the  Western  streams ; 
and  the  custom  was,  if  passengers  were  at  any  of  the 
landings,  for  them  to  go  out  in  a  boat,  the  steamer 
stopping  and  taking  them  on  board. 

"  I  was  contemplating  my  new  flat-boat,  and  won- 
dering whether  I  could  make  it  stronger  or  improve  it 
in  any  particular,  when  two  men  came  down  to  the 
shore  in  carriages,  with  trunks,  and  looking  at  the  dif- 
ferent boats,  singled  out  mine,  and  asked,  i  Who  owns 
this  ? '  I  answered,  somewhat  modestly,  *  I  do.'  '  Will 
you/  said  one  of  them,  '  take  us  and  our  trunks  out  to 
the  steamer.'  'Certainly/  said  I.  I  was  very  glad  to 
have  the  chance  of  earning  something.  I  supposed 
that  each  of  them  would  give  me  two  or  three  bits. 
The  trunks  were  put  on  my  flat-boat,  the  passengers 
seated  themselves  on  the  trunks,  and  I  sculled  them 
out  to  the  steamboat. 

"  They  got  on  board,  and  I  lifted  up  their  heavy 
trunks,  and  put  them  on  deck.  The  steamer  was 
about  to  put  on  steam  again,  when  I  called  out  that 
they  had  forgotten  to  pay  me.  Each  of  them  took 
from  his  pocket  a  silver  half-dollar,  and  threw  it  on  the 
floor  of  my  boat.  I  could  scarcely  believe  my  eyes  as 
I  picked  up  the  money.  Gentlemen,  you  may  think 
it  was  a  very  little  thing,  and  in  these  days  it  seems  to 
me  a  trifle ;  but  it  was  a  most  important  incident  in 
my  life.     I  could  scarcely  credit  that  I,  a  poor  boy 


SUNDRY  INCIDENTS.  1 71 

had  earned  a  dollar  in  less  than  a  day,  —  that  by  hon- 
est work  I  had  earned  a  dollar.  The  world  seemed 
wider  and  iairer  before  me  ;  I  was  a  more  hopeful  and 
confident  being  from  that  hour.', 

Abraham  had  earned  money  before,  considerable  of 
it>  but  it  belonged  to  his  father,  who  did  not  believe 
that  a  boy  had  any  necessary  use  for  it.  The  dollar 
received  for  carrying  the  trunks  he  regarded  his 
own. 

Abraham  felt,  after  leaving  Mr.  Gentry,  that  he  was 
competent  to  earn  more  than  he  had  done.  Doubt- 
less, also,  his  success  in  flat-boating  awakened  a  strong 
desire  to  continue  in  that  business.  For,  one  day,  he 
went  to  Mr.  Wood's  house,  and  stood  around  for  some 
time,  as  if  he  wanted  to  say  something  he  lacked 
courage  to  express. 

"What  is  it,  Abe  ? "  inquired  Mr.  Wood. 

"  I  want  to  get  a  place  to  work  on  the  river." 

"  That  so  ?     And  what  can  I  do  for  you  ? " 

"  I  would  like  to  have  you  give  me  a  recommenda- 
tion to  some  boat,  if  you  will." 

"But  you  are  not  of  age  yet,  Abe.  Your  father 
has  a  claim  on  you."  In  that  hard  country,  at  that 
time,  parents  needed  the  help  of  their  sons,  and  their 
claim  upon  their  labor  was  enforced  with  rigor. 

"I.  know  that,"  continued  Abraham;  "but  I  want 
to  get  a  start  somewhere,  and  I  can  do  more  for  father 
so  than  I  can  by  staying  around  here." 

"  That  may  be ;  but  that's  no  reason  why  I  should 
interfere ;  you  and  your  father  must  settle  that." 

Abraham  turned  away  from  this  interview  somewhat 
disappointed,  yet  disposed  to  make  the  best  of  it.     He 


172        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

abandoned  the  idea  of  life  on  the  river,  and  continued 
about  home.  Not  long  afterward,  Mr.  Wood  saw  him 
cutting  down  a  large  tree  in  the  forest  to  whip-saw 
into  plank. 

"  What's  up  now,  Abe  ? "  Mr.  Wood  inquired. 

"A  new  house;  father  is  talking  of  putting  up  a 
new  house/' 

"  Ah  !     And  you  are  getting  the  lumber  ready  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  going  to  have  it  all  ready  by  the  time  he  gets 
ready  to  build.' ' 

"  A  better  house,  I  suppose  ? "  said  Mr.  Wood,  in- 
quiringly. 

"  I  hope  so  ;  mother  wants  it  badly." 

"Well,  I  don't  blame  her,"  added  Mr.  Wood,  as  he 
turned  away. 

But  Abraham's  father  did  not  build  the  house,  as 
we  shall  learn  in  the  next  chapter.  The  lumber  was 
prepared,  but  the  project  of  removing  to  Illinois 
changed  his  purpose,  and  the  lumber  was  sold  to 
Josiah  Crawford  —  the  man  who  extorted  work  from 
Abraham  for  the  book. 

David  Turnham  bought  a  copy  of  the  "  Statutes  of 
Indiana,"  and  Abraham  heard  of  it,  in  consequence  of 
which  he  called  upon  the  neighbor. 

"  Can  I  see  your  copy  of  the  Statutes  of  Indiana?  I 
hear  you  have  one,"  Abraham  asked. 

"Of  course  you  can,  Abe,"  answered  David.  "Going 
to  study  law?     It  wouldn't  be  bad  business  for  you." 

"I  sha'n't  begin  to-day,"  responded  Abraham ;  "but 
I  want  to  take  a  look  into  the  laws  of  Indiana.  I  don't 
know  much  about  them." 

"That's  the  case  with  me;  and  that's  the  reason  I 


SUNDRY  INCIDENTS,  1 73 

bought  the  book.  I  can't  spare  it  for  you  to  take 
home,  for  I  study  it  every  minute  I  have  to  spare." 

"I  can  read  it  here,  just  as  well,"  replied  Abraham, 
as  David  handed  him  the  book.  "It  don't  make  any 
difference  where  I  read  it." 

The  result  was  that  Abraham  spent  much  time  at 
David  Turnham's  in  studying  the  statutes  of  his  adopted 
State.  When  David  wanted  the  book,  Abraham  turned 
to  Scott's  Lessons  and  Sinbad  the  Sailor,  two  books 
which  David  owned.  He  read  these  books  through  at 
David's  house,  besides  studying  the  laws  of  Indiana 
quite  thoroughly.  To  him  the  Statutes  were  by  no 
means  dry,  as  they  would  have  been  to  most  of  his 
companions  ;  for  they  opened  a  new  and  wide  field  of 
research  to  his  inquiring  mind.  Without  doubt,  the 
influence  of  that  study  upon  his  future  career  was 
marked.  It  began  to  be  seen  very  soon  ;  for,  one  day, 
he  said  to  David, — 

"I'm  going  to  Booneville  to  court;  won't  you  go 
with  me?" 

"  Going  to  be  tried  for  your  life?"  replied  David,  in 
a  vein  of  humor. 

"  Going  to  see  how  they  try  other  folks  for  their 
lives,"  answered  Abraham.  "  I  never  went  into  a  court 
room,  and  I'm  going  to  before  I'm  a  week  older." 

"  How  are  you  going,  Abe  ?  " 

"  Going  to  walk,  of  course ;  not  much  of  a  trip 
there." 

"Well,  it  may  not  be  much  of  a  walk  for  your  long 
legs,  but  it's  a  long  one  for  mine,"  responded  David. 
"  I  think  I  will  be  excused  till  you  get  to  be  a  lawyer 
and  have  a  case  at  the  bar,  then  I'll  walk  fifteen  miles 
to  see  and  hear."** 


174       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Abraham  walked  to  Booneville,  fifteen  miles,  to  court, 
and  was  doubly  paid  for  his  trouble.  The  novelty  and 
excitement  of  the  scene  captivated  him  so  completely 
that  he  walked  thither,  again  and  again  afterwards,  tc 
enjoy  the  treat  At  one  time  a  murder  trial  was  on 
the  docket,  in  which  one  of  the  best  lawyers  of  the 
State  was  counsel  for  the  defence — John  Breckinridge, 
"Esq.  Abraham  heard  his  able  and  eloquent  plea,  and 
would  have  sat  a  week  to  listen  to  the  speaker.  "  If  I 
could  ever  become  such  a  speaker,  I  should  be  perfectly 
satisfied/'  he  said  within  himself.  He  was  so  thoroughly 
charmed  by  the  speech,  that  he  forgot  his  usual  modesty, 
and,  at  the  close  of  the  court,  stepped  up  to  Mr.  Breck- 
inridge and  said, — 

"  That  was  the  best  speech  I  ever  heard." 
The  lawyer  looked  at  the  shabby  boy,  as  if  surprised 
at  his  boldness  ;  but  did  not  deign  a  reply.  He  passed 
on,  leaving  Abraham  to  his  own  reflections.  It  deserves 
to  be  recorded  here,  that  John  Breckinridge  met  Abra- 
ham at  Washington  when  the  latter  was  President. 
Breckinridge  was  a  resident  of  Texas  then,  and  was  a 
rebel.  As  he  did  not  know  who  the  shabby  boy  was 
who  addressed  him  at  Boonville,  he  did  not  know,  of 
course,  that  it  was  he  who  had  become  President.  But 
Lincoln  recognized  the  eloquent  pleader  of  Booneville 
at  once,  and  kindly  refreshed  the  rebel's  memory. 
Breckinridge  had  applied  for  executive  clemency,  and 
that  Booneville  speech  became  a  favorable  introduction. 
Mr.  Lincoln  said  to  him,  "  It  was  the  best  speech  that 
I  ever  heard  up  to  that  time.  If  I  could,  as  I  then 
thought,  make  as  good  a  speech  as  that,  my  soul  would 
be  satisfied.0 


SUNDRY  INCIDENTS.  1 75 

Through  Abraham's  influence  a  "speaking-meeting/* 
or,  as  we  call  it  now,  a  lyceumy  was  started  at  Gentry* 
ville. 

"  It  will  be  very  improving,"  said  Abraham  to  Nat 
Grigsby,  "to  say  nothing  about  the  fun  of  the  thing/ ' 
He  was  making  a  plea  for  such  an  institution. 

"  If  we  were  all  like  you,  Abe,  there  would  be  both 
improvement  and  fun  in  the  thing,  but  we  are  not," 
answered  Nat.     "I'll  do  what  I  can,  though." 

"  And  that  is  all  any  of  us  can  do.,, 

"What  will  you  do  at  your  speaking-meeting?"  Nat 
continued. 

"  Speak  pieces,  discuss  questions,  and  read  compo- 
sitions," answered  Abraham.  "  We  can  have  real  good 
times." 

"  We  might  if  we  could  all  speak  and  write  and  argue 
as  you  can,"  responded  Nat.  "  But  most  of  us  will 
have  to  take  back  seats  in  such  a  meeting,  I  tell  you. 
But  I  go  in  for  it." 

All  the  young  people  favored  the  enterprise  finally, 
and  not  a  few  of  the  older  ones.  It  started  with  flying 
colors,  and  Abraham  was  in  his  element.  The  pieces 
he  had  committed  to  memory  as  a  pastime  now  served 
him  a  good  purpose,  and,  more  than  ever,  the  people 
extolled  him.  Old  Mr.  Gentry  said,  "  Abe  will  make 
a  great  man  sure  as  he  lives."  One  of  the  enthusiastic 
women  declared,  "  He  will  be  President  of  the  United 
States  yet." 

In  the  discussions,  Abraham  was  logical  and  witty ; 
and  every  body  was  on  the  alert  to  hear  him  speak. 
Among  the  questions  discussed  were,  "  Which  is  the 
stronger,  wind  or  water?"  and  "Which  has  the  most 


176       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

right  to  complain,  the  negro  or  the  Indian  ? "  Abra- 
ham had  picked  up  much  information  concerning 
wind  and  water,  so  that  he  was  not  at  all  limited  for 
materials  in  the  discussion.  On  the  other  question  he 
had  very  definite  views  of  his  own,  and  not  a  little  in- 
formation collected  from  here  and  there.  He  hated 
Indians  out  of  respect  to  his  ancestors,  if  for  no  other 
reason  ;  still,  he  considered  them  an  abused  race.  But 
he  spoke  for  the  negro  in  that  debate,  and  made  his 
first  public  plea  for  the  enslaved,  at  that  time,  on  the 
free  soil  of  Indiana. 

That  Abraham  did  not  improve  in  his  personal  ap- 
pearance, as  he  did  in  knowledge,  is  evident  from  a 
remark  of  Miss  Roby,  when  he  went  to  live  with  Mr. 
Gentry.  She  said,  "  Abe  was  then  a  long,  thin,  leggy, 
gawky  boy,  dried  up  and  shrivelled.,,  He  appeared  to 
be  much  older  than  he  was.  Caring  little  or  nothing 
tor  dress,  he  continued  to  wear  apparel  of  the  genuine 
pioneer  pattern,  which  made  his  homeliness  more 
homely.  A  remark  of  Dennis,  on  one  occasion,  was 
quite  expressive :  "  Abe  has  too  much  legs  to  be  hand- 
some ;  "  and  it  was  true. 

Still,  he  was  the  centre  of  attraction  in  all  circles. 
Men,  women  and  children  loved  to  hear  him  talk. 
They  would  gather  about  him  to  listen,  whether  in 
fiouse  or  field.  He  continued  to  improve,  too,  in  this 
regard.     Nat  Grigsby  says  :  — 

"  When  he  appeared  in  company,  the  boys  would 
gather  and  cluster  around  him  to  hear  him  talk.  He 
was  figurative  in  his  speeches,  talks,  and  conversations. 
He  argued  much  from  analogy,  and  explained  things 
hard  for  us  to  understand  by  stories,  maxims,  tales, 


SUNDKr  INCIDENTS.  1 77 

and  figures.  He  would  almost  always  point  his  lesson 
or  idea  by  some  story  that  was  plain  and  near  us,  that 
we  might  instantly  see  the  force  and  bearing  of  what 
he  said." 

Later,  Nat  Grigsby  and  his  brother  were  married  a? 
the  same  time,  and  brought  their  wives  home  to  their 
father's  cabin.  They  had  a  grand  reception  for  pio- 
neer life,  but,  in  consequence  of  some  pique,  did 
not  ixivite  Abraham,  who  felt  the  slight  keenly.  In 
his  chagrin,  he  wrote  a  piece  of  poetry,  which  he 
called  "The  Chronicles  of  Reuben,"  (Reuben  was  the 
name  of  one  of  the  Grigsby  brothers,)  and  dropped 
it  in  the  road  where  he  was  quite  sure  it  would  fall 
into  their  hands.  It  was  a  very  sarcastic  production, 
and  caused  quite  a  sensation,  not  only  in  the  family, 
but  also  in  the  neighborhood.  It  was  a  thoughtless 
act  of  Abraham,  which  he  regretted  afterwards  ;  and 
the  whole  affair  was  subsequently  settled  on  a  lasting 
basis.  Nat  Gngsby  wrote,  after  Abraham  was  dis- 
tinguished in  public  life  :  — 

"  Lincoln  did  write  what  is  called  the  '  Chronicles 
of  Reuben '  —  a  satire  on  the  Grigsbys  and  Josiah 
Crawford,  —  not  the  school-master,  but  the  man  who 
lent  Lincoln  *  The  Life  of  Washington/  The  satire 
was  good,  sharp,  cutting  ;  it  hurt  us  then,  but  it  is  all 
ovei  now.  There  is  no  family  in  the  land  who,  after 
this,  loved  Abe  so  well,  and  who  now  look  upon  him 
as  so  great  a  man.  We  all  voted  for  him, —  all  that 
could,  —  children  and  grandchildren,  first,  last,  and 
always." 

Dennis  Hanks,  who  ought  to  know  more  about 
Abraham,  from  fourteen  to  eighteen  years  of  age,  than 


178       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

any  of  his  companions,  has  so  characteristically  de» 
scribed  his  way  of  learning  and  making  progress,  that 
we  quote  his  description  here  :  — 

"  He  learned  by  sight,  scent  and  hearing.  He  heard 
all  that  was  said,  and  talked  over  and  over  the  ques- 
tions heard ;  wore  them  slick,  greasy  and  threadbare. 
He  went  to  political  and  other  speeches  and  gather- 
ings ;  he  would  hear  all  sides  and  opinions,  talk  them 
over  and  discuss  them,  agreeing  or  disagreeing.  Abe, 
as  I  said  before,  was  originally  a  Democrat  after  the 
order  of  Jackson,  so  was  his  father,  so  we  all  were. 
He  preached,  made  speeches,  read  for  us,  explained  to 
us,  etc.  .  .  .  Abe  was  a  cheerful  boy,  a  witty  boy,  wac 
humorous  always ;  sometimes  would  get  sad,  not  very 
often.  .  .  .  He  would  frequently  make  political  and 
other  speeches  to  the  boys ;  he  was  calm,  logical  and 
clear  always.  He  attended  trials,  went  to  court  always, 
read  the  Revised  Statutes  of  Indiana,  dated  1827, 
heard  law  speeches,  and  listened  to  law  trials,  etc.  He 
was  always  reading,  scribbling,  writing,  ciphering, 
writing  poetry,  and  the  like.  ...  In  Gentryville,  about 
one  mile  west  of  Thomas  Lincoln's  farm,  Lincoln 
would  go  and  tell  his  jokes  and  stories,  and  was 
so  odd,  original,  humorous  and  witty,  that  all  the 
people  in  town  would  gather  around  him.  He  would 
keep  them  there  till  midnight.  Abe  was  a  good  talker, 
a  good  reader,  and  was  a  kind  of  newsboy." 

In  consequence  of  the  prevalence  of  the  milk-disease, 
from  time  to  time,  the  Lincolns  discussed  the  subject 
of  removal  to  Illinois.  John  Hanks  had  gone  thither, 
and  sent  back  favorable  reports  of  the  country.  John 
returned  to  Kentucky  after  residing  with  the  Lincolns 


SUNDRY  INCIDENTS.  1 79 

four  years,  as  we  have  said  before,  and  afterward  re* 
moved  to  Illinois.  It  was  natural,  therefore,  when  the 
question  of  escaping  from  the  dreaded  m^k-disease  was 
raised,  to  turn  towards  that  State.  The  next  chapter 
will  furnish  an  account  of  the  removal. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

OFF    TO    ILLINOIS. 

JKFORE  the  ist  of  January,  1830,  Mr.  Lin* 
coin  decided  to  remove  to  Illinois.  Dennis 
Hanks  and  Levi  Hall,  who  had  married 
Mrs.  Lincoln's  daughters,  concluded  to  re- 
move, also,  with  their  families.  Dennis  had  made  2 
flying  visit  thither,  after  he  had  recovered  from  a 
severe  attack  of  the  milk-disease,  and  returned  with 
marvellous  stories  about  the  country.  He  went  to 
visit  "  Uncle  John  Hanks,"  who  had  settled  four  miles 
from  Decatur,  in  Macon  County0  On  this  account, 
Mr.  Lincoln  decided  to  go  directly  to  "  Uncle  John's." 
He  sold  his  farm  to  the  senior  Gentry,  and  his  corn 
and  hogs  to  David  Turnham.  He  received  ten  cents 
a  bushel  for  his  corn,  and  sold  the  hogs  for  a  "song." 
He  took  with  him  to  Illinois  "  some  stock-cattle,  one 
horse,  one  bureau,  one  table,  one  clothes-chest,  one 
set  of  chairs,  working  utensils,  clothing,  etc."  The 
goods  belonging  to  the  three  families  were  loaded 
upon  Mr.  Lincoln's  wagon,  an  "  ironed  "  wagon,  which 
was  the  first  one  he  ever  owned.  It  was  drawn  by 
four  yoke  of  oxen,  two  of  them  Lincoln's  and  the  othei 
two  Hanks's ;  and  Abraham  drove  the  team.     There 


OFF  TO  ILLINOIS.  l8l 


^ere  thirteen  persons  in  all  who  went  — men,  women 
and  children. 

Abraham  was  twenty-one  years  of  age  on  the 
twelfth  day  of  February,  two  or  three  days  before 
they  started  upon  their  journey. 

"  You  are  your  own  man  now,"  said  his  father. 

"  What  of  that  ?  "  was  Abraham's  reply,  suspecting 
what  thoughts  were  in  his  mind. 

"  Why,  you  can  go  or  stay,  though  I  don't  see  how 
I  can  get  along  without  you." 

"  Nor  I ;  and  I  want  to  go  to  Illinois  more  than  you 
do,  and  I  shall  see  you  safely  there,  and  settled  down 
before  1  leave  you." 

"  I'm  glad  of  that,"  continued  his  father.  "  I  won't 
ask  you  to  stay  at  home  one  minute  after  we  get  set- 
tled down.  You  ought  to  be  looking  out  for  yourself, 
now  that  you  are  of  age." 

"We'll  talk  about  that  when  we  get  there.  Per- 
haps I  shall  find  enough  to  do  for  a  while  to  get  you 
fixed  up,  and  I  can  attend  to  that  better  than  you 
can." 

"  Well,  it's  a  long  ways  there,  and  I'm  almost  sorry 
that  I  undertook  it  at  my  time  of  life.  It  looks  like  a 
great  job  to  get  there,  and  begin  new." 

"It  don't  to  me.  We'll  be  there,  and  have  a  roof 
over  our  heads,  in  less  than  four  weeks." 

"  If  nothing  happens,  you  mean." 

"  There  will  something  happen,  I'm  thinking," 
answered  Abraham,  dryly,  "or  we  shall  never  get 
there." 

"What?" 

"  I  expect  that  it  will  happen  that  we  shall  go  there 


1 82       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

in  about  two  weeks,  by  hard  travelling.  If  that  don't 
happen,  I  shall  be  sorry." 

"  We  shall  see,"  added  Mr.  Lincoln. 

The  fact  was,  Abraham  thought  too  much  of  his 
father  and  mother  to  leave  them  to  undertake  such  a 
journey  alone.  No  money  could  have  hired  him  to 
leave  them  before  they  were  settled  in  Illinois.  Mr. 
Scripps,  who  knows  all  the  circumstances  well,  says  : 
"  He  was  the  only  son  of  his  father,  now  advanced  in 
years,  and  it  was  not  in  his  nature  to  desert  his  aged 
sire  at  a  time  when  all  the  hardships,  privations,  and 
toil  of  making  a  new  home  in  a  new  country  were 
about  to  be  entered  upon.  Whatever  the  future  may 
have  seemed  to  hold  in  it,  as  a  reward  for  effort 
specially  directed  to  that  end,  he  cheerfully  put  aside 
in  obedience  to  his  sense  of  duty,  and  engaged  at  once 
and  heartily  in  the  work  before  him." 

The  above  writer,  a  Western  man  himself,  describes 
the  manner  of  moving  in  those  days,  as  follows  :  — 

"  In  those  days,  when  people  changed  their  resi- 
dence from  one  State  or  settlement  to  another,  they 
took  all  their  movable  possessions  with  them,  —  thei/ 
household  goods,  their  kitchen  utensils,  including  pro- 
visions for  the  journey,  their  farming  implements, 
their  horses  and  cattle.  The  former  were  loaded  into 
wagons,  drawn,  for  the  most  part,  by  oxen ;  and  the 
latter  were  driven  by  the  smaller  boys  of  the  family, 
who  were  sometimes  assisted  by  their  sisters  and 
mother.  Thus  arranged  for  a  journey  of  weeks,  —  not 
unfrequently  of  months,  — the  emigrant  set  out,  think* 
ing  but  little  of  the  hardships  before  him, — of  bad 
roads,  of  unbridged  streams,  of  disagreeable  weather. 


OFF  TO  ILLINOIS.  1 83 

of  sleeping  on  the  ground  or  in  the  wagon,  of  sickness, 
accidents,  and  sometimes  death  by  the  way, — dwelling 
chiefly  in  thought  upon  the  novelty  and  excitement  of 
the  trip,  the  rumored  attractions  of  the  new  country 
whither  he  was  going,  and  of  the  probable  advantages 
likely  to  result  from  the  change.  By  ten  or  fifteen 
miles  per  day,  over  untravelled  roads,  now  across 
mountains,  swamps  and  watercourses,  and  now  through 
dense,  umbrageous  forests,  and  across  broad  prairies 
where  the  horizon  alone  bounded  the  vision,  the  cara- 
van of  wagons,  men,  women  and  children,  flocks  and 
herds,  toiled  onward  by  day,  sleeping  under  the  broad 
canopy  of  stars  at  night,  patiently  accomplishing  the 
destined  journey,  sometimes  of  weeks',  sometimes  of 
months'  duration." 

In  this  way  the  Lincoln,  Hanks  and  Hall  families 
moved  to  Illinois.  The  distance  was  about  two  hun- 
dred miles — not  much  of  an  undertaking  for  the  per- 
severance and  heroism  of  pioneer  families. 

The  weather  proved  favorable  nearly  all  the  way, 
though  the  roads  were  excessively  muddy.  For  miles 
Abraham  walked  through  mud  a  foot  deep.  Often, 
for  a  long  distance,  he  waded  in  water  up  to  his  knees 
(and  it  is  well  known  that  his  knees  were  not  very  low 
down)-  When  they  had  performed  nearly  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles  of  the  journey,  they  came  to  the 
Kaskaskia  River,  where  they  found  the  bottom  lands 
overflowed,  and  the  old  corduroy  road  nearly  gone, 

"We're  done  to  now,"  said  Hanks. 

"  I  don't  know  about  that,"  answered  Abraham. 
"  Let  us  see  about  it." 

"  It  is  plain  enough  to  see,  I  should  think.     The 


1 84       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

man  who  directed  us  back  there  yesterday  said,  if  the 
bottom  was  overflowed,  it  would  be  three  miles 
through  water,  and  I  should  think  it  was  more  than 
that." 

"  I  don't  care  if  it's  twice  three,"  replied  Abraham, 
u  if  it's  not  too  deep  to  wade." 

"We  can  wait  some  days  for  the  water  to  fall,  or  we 
can  go  up  or  down  the  river  a  few  miles,  and  possibly 
find  a  better  place  to  cross,"  suggested  Hanks. 

"  That  will  take  too  much  time.  The  water  won't 
fall  yet  awhile.  It  is  February  yet,  you  know,  and  the 
rivers  are  always  high.  I  am  for  going  straight  ahead 
through  thick  and  thin." 

"That's  the  only  way,  I  think,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln, 
who  had  listened  to  the  conversation,  while  he  was 
looking  rather  doubtfully  upon  the  flood  of  water  before 
them. 

"  We  can't  stay  here  for  the  water  to  fall,  that's 
certain,"  continued  Abraham,  "and  as  to  finding  a 
better  place  to  cross,  I  don't  believe  we  can,  if  we  go 
around  twenty  miles." 

"And  that  would  take  time,  too,"  suggested  his 
father. 

"  Yes,  and  I  am  for  going  right  along.  I  will  go 
forward  ;  and  if  I  go  under,  the  rest  of  you  may  take 
warning."  This  remark  was  made  rather  in  a  strain 
of  pleasantry,  to  inspire  all  hearts  around  him  with 
courage.  "  Come,  Dennis,  what  do  you  say  ?  Will 
you  follow  me?" 

"Of  course  ;  I  can  go  where  you  can." 

It  was  settled  to  go  forward,  turning  neither  to  the 
right  hand  nor  left.     And  for  three  miles  Abraham 


OFF  TO  ILLINOIS.  1 85 

drove  his  team  through  water  that  was  up  to  his  waist, 
urging  his  oxen  along,  and  cheering  the  hearts  of  the 
company  with  words  of  encouragement.  Mr.  Lamon 
says,  "  In  crossing  the  swollen  and  tumultuous  Kas« 
kaskia  the  wagon  and  oxen  were  nearly  swept  away." 
But  Abraham's  pluck  and  energy  overcame  the  diffi- 
culty, and,  on  the  first  day  of  March,  1830,  they  arrived 
at  John  Hanks'  house,  four  miles  northwest  of  Decitur. 
What  kind  of  a  cabin  Uncle  John  possessed,  we  do  not 
know,  but  the  advent  of  thirteen  visitors  must  have 
fully  occupied  all  the  spare  room  in  it.  But  squeezing 
the  largest  number  of  persons  into  the  smallest  space 
was  incidental  to  pioneer  life. 

"I've  fixed  on  the  spot  for  you  to  settle,,,  said  Uncle 
John  to  Mr.  Lincoln,  "  and  there's  a  lot  of  logs  there  for 
a  cabin,  which  I  cut  last  year." 

"How  far  away  is  it? "  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  Only  a  few  miles  ;  and  it  will  be  a  short  job  to  put 
up  a  cabin,  now  the  logs  are  all  ready ;  and  you  are 
welcome  to  them." 

"  Well,  that  is  a  great  lift,"  replied  Mr.  Lincoln  ; 
"with  the  logs  all  cut,  Abe,  Dennis,  and  I  will  make 
short  work  of  building  a  shelter." 

"And  my  help,  too,"  added  Uncle  John ;  "nothing 
to  do  now  but  to  get  you  fixed." 

"  I'm  going  to  have  a  better  house  than  we  had  in 
Indiana,"  chimed  in  Abraham,  who  was  listening  to  the 
conversation.     "  Hewed  logs,  and  less  mud." 

"Fll  second  that  project,"  interjected  his  mother. 
"  A  little  more  labor  and  expense  upon  a  habitation 
will  increase  comforts  ten-fold." 

The  subject  of  a  log-house  was  thus  discussed,  and 


1 86       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

the  following  day,  Mr.  Lincoln,  Uncle  John,  Abraham 
and  Dennis  repaired  to  the  location  selected,  to  investi- 
gate.  It  was  on  the  north  side  of  Sangamon  River, 
about  ten  miles  west  of  Decatur;  and,  perhaps,  six 
miles,  in  a  straight  line,  from  Uncle  John's  cabin.  All 
were  delighted  with  the  location,  mainly  because  it  was 
at  the  junction  of  the  timber  and  prairie  lands,  and 
iva.  well  supplied  with  water. 

Short  work  was  made  in  erecting  the  best  log-house 
the  Lincoln  family  ever  occupied.  Abraham  took 
charge  of  the  work,  because  he  was  determined  to  have 
as  good  a  house  for  his  parents  as  could  be  built  of 
logs.  There  was  a  good  supply  of  material  that  Uncle 
John  had  prepared,  from  which  Abraham  selected  the 
best  logs,  every  one  of  which  was  carefully  hewn,  though 
the  only  tools  they  had  to  work  with  was  a  common  axe, 
a  broad-axe,  a  hand-saw,  and  a  "  drawer-knife/ ' 

After  the  cabin  was  built,  a  smoke-house  and  stable 
were  erected  near  by.  The  doors  and  floor  of  the  cabin 
were  made  of  puncheon,  and  the  gable-ends  of  the 
structure  boarded  up  with  plank  "  rived  "  by  Abraham's 
hand  out  of  oak  timber.  The  nails  used  —  and  they 
were  very  few — were  all  brought  from  their  old  home 
in  Indiana.* 

"  You  never  saw  such  land  as  this,"  remarked  John 
Hanks  to  Mr.  Lincoln.  "The  land  in  Indiana  can't 
compare  with  this  prairie  land." 

"  I'm  convinced  of  that,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln ; 
"  the  half  wasn't  told  us.  And  we  must  turn  over  a  big 
piece  of  it  this  spring  for  corn,  and  fence  it,  too.  Abe 
is  great  on  splitting  rails." 

*  Dr.  Holland. 


OFI    TO  ILLINOIS.  1 87 

"  He  can  have  a  chance  to  split  'em  to  his  heart's 
content  now,"  continued  John.  "  It  '11  take  a  pile  on 
'em  to  fence  fifteen  acres,  and  you'll  want  to  put  in  as 
much  as  that." 

"  And  fifteen  acres  of  such  land  as  this  will  make 
such  a  corn-field  as  Indiana  farmers  are  not  acquainted 
with,"  added  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  Abe  and  I  can  break  it  up,"  continued  John  ;  "and 
fence  it  into  the  bargain." 

This  was  the  final  decision,  after  the  Lincolns  were 
settled  in  their  new  home  —  that  Abraham  and  John 
should  plough  the  fifteen  acres,  and  then  fence  the  field. 
With  the  four  yokes  of  oxen,  each  driving  two  yokes, 
the  fifteen  acres  were  turned  over  within  a  week  ;  and, 
as  soon  as  the  planting  was  done,  the  rail-splitting  and 
fencing  commenced  in  earnest.  Abraham  and  John 
got  out  all  the  rails,  and  put  up  the  fence  around  the 
fifteen  acres.  Those  rails  became  historic  after  thirty 
years,  and  played  an  important  part  in  an  interesting 
chapter  of  our  national  career,  as  we  shall  learn  here- 
after. 

With  all  his  labor  at  home,  Abraham  found  time  to 
work  out  considerably  in  the  neighborhood.  Rev.  A> 
Hale  of  Springfield,  Illinois,  visited  the  locality,  after 
the  death  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  one  Mrs.  Brown 
related  the  following  to  him  :  — 

"  I  remember  Mr.  Lincoln.  He  worked  for  my  old 
man,  and  helped  make  a  crap.  We  lived  on  the  same 
farm  we  live  on  now,  and  he  worked  and  made  a  crap, 
and  the  next  winter  they  hauled  the  crap  all  the  way 
to  Galena,  and  sold  it.  At  that  time  there  was  no 
public-houses,  and  travellers  were  obliged  to  stay  at 


188       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

'■- — (* 

any  house  along  the  road  that  could  take  them  ia 
One  evening  a  right  smart-looking  man  rode  up  to  the 
fence,  and  asked  my  old  man  if  he  could  get  to  stay 
over  night.  '  Well/  said  Mr.  Brown,  '  we  can  feed 
your  crittur,  and  give  you  something  to  eat,  but  we 
can't  lodge  you  unless  you  can  sleep  on  the  bed  with 
the  hired  man/  The  man  hesitated,  and  asked,  '  Where 
is  he?'  'Well/  said  Mr.  Brown,  'you  can  come  and 
see  him/  So  the  man  got  down  from  his  crittur,  and 
Mr.  Brown  took  him  around  to  where,  in  the  shade  of 
the  house,  Abe  lay  his  full  length  on  the  ground,  with 
an  open  book  before  him.  'There/  said  Mr.  Brown, 
pointing  to  him,  'he  is/  The  stranger  looked  at  him 
a  minute,  and  said,  'Well,  I  think  he'll  do*/  and  he 
stayed  and  slept  with  the  President  of  the  United 
States/* 

It  is  claimed  that  Mrs.  Brown  was  wrong  in  saying 
that  Abraham  worked  for  her  husband,  the  fact  being 
that  he  worked  for  one  Taylor,  near  by,  and  boarded 
with  her.  It  is  probable,  also,  that  he  worked  for  him 
only  at  such  times,  during  that  first  summer  in  Illinois, 
as  he  was  not  needed  at  home. 

"Abe  was  the  roughest  looking  fellow  I  ever  saw/' 
remarked  George  Cluse,  who  worked  with  him  occa- 
sionally that  year;  "he  was  so  tall,  awkward  and 
wrinkled  ! " 

"  Was  he  a  good  worker  ? " 

"  None  better  to  be  found  ;  and  he  knew  more  than 
any  man  I  ever  saw ;  but  his  dress  was  comical." 

"  How  did  he  dress?" 

"  He  wore  trousers  made  of  flax  and  tow,  cut  tight 
at  the  ankles,  and  out  at  both  knees.     I  looked  bad 


OFF  TO  ILLINOIS.  1 89 

enough  myself,  but  compared  with  him,  my  dress  was 
superb."  At  the  time  Thomas  Lincoln  left  Indiana, 
few  families  in  that  part  of  the  country  used  woollen 
goods.     They  were  unknown  there  until  about  1825. 

"  I  split  rails  with  him  a  good  deal,"  continued 
Cluse.  "  He'd  split  more  rails  in  a  day  than  any  other 
man.  He  was  strong  as  an  ox,  and  never  got  tired. 
He  made  a  bargain  that  season  with  Nancy  Miller,  to 
split  four  hundred  rails  for  every  yard  of  brown  jeans, 
dyed  with  white  walnut  bark,  that  would  be  necessary 
to  make  him  a  pair  of  trousers ;  and  that  was  the  way 
he  got  trousers  that  were  not  out  at  the  ki.ees." 

"  What  about  reading  ?     Was  he  fond  of  books  ? " 

'When  I  worked  with  him,  he'd  not  much  chance 
to  ipol  with  books ;  but  he  was  always  talking  history, 
iiiid  politics,  and  great  men;  and  I  have  seen  him 
going  to  his  work  with  a  book  in  his  hand.  Then,  Abe 
walked  five,  six,  and  seven  miles  to  his  work." 

It  is  quite  evident  that  Abraham  made  himself  ex. 
iremely  useful  in  Illinois  in  the  year  1830  by  his  in- 
dustry and  hard  labor.  He  made  himself  very  agree 
able,  also,  by  his  intelligence  and  social  qualities. 
George  Cluse  says,  "  He  was  a  welcome  guest  in  every 
house  in  the  neighborhood." 

In  the  autumn  of  that  year,  fever  and  ague  visited 
the  region  of  Decatur,  and  every  member  of  the  Lin 
coin  family  were  attacked  by  it  —  not  severely,  never- 
theless with  sufficient  violence  to  make  them  "  shake." 
Even  Abraham's  stalwart  frame  came  under  its  power 
for  a  brief  season  ;  but  he  shook  it  off  before  it  had 
much  of  a  chance  to  shake  him.  The  experience,  how- 
ever, satisfied  the  family  that  their  location  in  Illinois 


I  go       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

was  not  favorable  to  health.  And  we  may  state  here 
as  weil  as  anywhere,  that,  in  consequence  of  the  ap- 
pearance of  this  disease,  Mr.  Lincoln  removed  subse 
quently  to  a  more  favorable  locality,  and  finally  settled 
in  Cole's  County,  where  he  died  on  the  17th  of  Jan- 
uary, 185 1. 

The  first  winter  of  the  Lincolns  in  Illinois  was  a 
very  trying  one.  It  was  the  winter  of  the  "great 
snow,"  as  it  was  called,  when,  for  weeks,  it  averaged 
three  feet  deep.  Being  chiefly  dependent  upon  the 
rifle  for  meat,  the  severity  of  the  winter  interfered 
somewhat  with  their  supplies.  But  for  the  strength, 
endurance,  and  perseverance  of  Abraham,  their  com- 
forts would  have  been  abridged  much  more.  His  use 
of  the  rifle  during  that  rigorous  winter  well  nigh  dis- 
proved what  one  of  his  early  associates  writes  to  us, 
viz.  :  "  Abe  was  not  much  of  a  hunter ;  we  seldom  went 
hunting  together.  The  time  spent  by  us  boys  in  this 
amusement  was  improved  by  him  in  the  perusal  of 
some  good  book." 


CHAPTER    XV. 
ANOTHER  TRIP  TO  NEW  ORLEANS. 

IIENTON  OFFUTT  was  a  trader,  residing  at 
New  Salem.  Meeting  John  Hanks,  one  day, 
he  said:  — 

"  John  !  I  want  you  to  take  a  boat  for  me 
to  New  Orleans  on  a  trading  trip  ;  you  understand  the 
business."     John  had  some  reputation  as  a  waterman. 

"  I  can't  do  it;  don't  fancy  the  bisness.,, 

"  Fudge !  you  can  do  it  if  you  only  think  so.  I'll 
pay  you  extra  for  it.  You  are  the  only  man  who  can 
do  it  to  suit  me." 

"  I  know  of  a  man  who  can  do  it  for  you,"  said  John. 
"Abe  Lincoln  understands  it ;  and  perhaps  he'll  do  it." 

"Who's  Abe  Lincoln?" 

"  He's  a  relative  of  mine ;  came  to  Illinois  from 
Indiana  about  one  year  ago,  and  settled  a  few  miles 
from  me." 

"Well,  I  don't  know  anything  about  him,"  continued 
Offutt,  "  and  I  do  know  about  you.     Say  you'll  go." 

"Maybe  I'll  go  if  Abe  and  John  Johnston  will  go," 

"  And  who's  John  Johnston  ? " 

"  He  is  Abe  Lincoln's  step-brother,  and  lives  with 
him.     He  came  with  him  from  Indiana." 


192       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  And  you  think  they  are  good  men  for  the  business  ? ' 

"  I  know  they  are ;  Abe,  especially,  can't  be  beat  or 
a  boat.     He's  the  tallest  and  strongest  chap  in  Illinois. " 

"  Well,  now,  John,  I'll  do  most  any  way  to  get  you  to 
undertake  the  trip,"  continued  Offutt ;  "and  if  you'll 
see  your  two  friends,  and  get  them  to  go,  I'll  see  that 
they'll  make  a  good  thing  of  it." 

"  How  much  pay  will  you  give?" 

"  I'll  give  you— all  three  of  you — fifty  cents  a  day; 
and,  at  the  end  of  the  trip,  I  will  divide  sixty  dollars, 
in  addition,  equally  between  you." 

"That's  good  pay,  and  no  mistake,"  replied  John, 
who  was  rather  surprised  at  the  generosity  of  the  offer : 
"  I  think  we'll  be  able  to  arrange  it." 

Offutt  was  a  man  of  considerable  property  for  that 
region,  and  he  was  generous,  too,  some  said  "  too 
generous  for  his  own  good." 

John  Hanks  lost  no  time  in  laying  the  subject  before 
Abraham  and  Johnston. 

"  I  should  like  the  job,"  Abraham  replied  at  once. 
"That  is  larger  pay  than  I  ever  had,  and  I  rather  like 
the  business." 

"I  can't  say  that  I  like  the  business,"  said  Hanks; 
"but  I  think  I'll  accept  this  offer.  Offutt  is  a  capital 
fellow,  and  I  would  go  on  such  a  trip  for  him  a  little 
quicker  than  I  would  for  anybody  else." 

•'  Agreed,"  was  John  Johnston's  laconic  way  of  say- 
ing that  he  would  go.  The  fact  was,  Offutt  had  made 
them  a  very  generous  offer — larger  pay  than  any  one 
of  them  had  ever  received. 

It  was  February,  1831,  when  Offutt  made  the  offer; 
and,  early  in  March,  the  fortunate  trio  left  home  to 


ANOTHER   TRIP   TO  NEW  ORLEANS.       193 

meet  Offutt  at  Springfield,  according  to  arrangement. 
They  proceeded  down  the  Sangamon  in  a  canoe  to 
Jamestown  (then  known  as  Judy's  Ferry)  five  miles 
east  of  Springfield.  Thence  they  walked  to  Spring- 
field, where  they  met  Offutt  at  "  Elliott's  Tavern." 
Offutt  met  Abraham  with  a  look  of  surprise.  He  was 
not  expecting  to  see  a  giant,  although  Hanks  told  him 
that  his  relative  was  the  tallest  man  in  Illinois ;  nor 
was  he  expecting  to  see  a  man  as  green  as  he  was  tall. 
However,  they  were  soon  on  the  best  of  terms,  and 
Offutt  said:  — 

"  I've  been  badly  disappointed ;  expected  a  boat  built 
by  this  time,  at  the  mouth  of  Spring  Creek,  but  I 
learned  yesterday  that  it  wan't  touched  ;  and  now  what's 
to  be  done? " 

"  Build  a  boat  at  once,"  answered  Abraham,  with  a 
promptness  that  won  Offutt's  heart. 

"Can  you  build  a  boat?"  asked  Offutt. 

"Of  course  I  can,"  replied  Abraham.  "We  three 
can  put  the  job  through  in  three  weeks." 

"We'll  have  the  boat,  then,  in  short  order,"  responded 
Offutt.  "  Plenty  of  timber  at  Spring  Creek,  and  we 
can  raft  it  down  to  Sangamontown,  and  build  the  boat 
there." 

They  repaired  to  Spring  Creek,  and  spent  about  two 
weeks  there  cutting  timber  "on  Congress  land,"  board- 
ing a  full  mile  from  their  work.  While  thero;  Abraham 
walked  back  to  Judy's  Ferry,  ten  miles  distant,  and 
brought  down  the  canoe  which  they  had  left  there. 
The  timber  was  ratted  down  to  Sangamontown,  where 
Abraham  and  his  two  coni^nions  erected  a  shanty  for 
temporary  shelter.      Here  they   boarded  themselves, 


194       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HQUSR. 

Abraham  playing  the  part  of  "cook"  to  the  entire 
satisfaction  of  the  two  Johns.  The  lumber  was  sawed 
at  Kilpatrick's  mill,  one  mile  and  a  half  distant.  With 
all  these  inconveniences,  the  boat  was  ready  for  th<" 
trip  within  four  weeks,  and  a  very  substantial  boat  it 
was. 

Offutt  joined  the  party  at  Sangamontown,  and  was 
present  during  the  construction  of  the  boat.     He  soon 
learned  that  the  long,  tall,  and  green  Abraham  was  a 
young  man  of  rare  talents.     Offutt  was  a  Whig,  and  so 
was  Abraham  now,  although  the  latter  was  not  willing 
to  hear  the  former  abuse  Jackson.     Offutt  indulged  his 
pique  in  this  line,  and  Abraham  met  him  squarely,  and 
hot   discussions   followed,    enlivening   the   camp   and 
making  merry  times.     Offutt  was  quite  a  politician,  but 
Abraham  was  more  than  a  match  for  him.     His  famil- 
iarity with  the  lives  of  a  few  of  the  great  men  of  the 
country,  and  the  habits,  customs  and  principles  of  then 
times,  gave  him  a  decided  advantage  over  Offutt.  Abra 
ham  often  contributed  to  the  merriment  of  the  cam] 
by  reciting  "prose-like  orations"  and  quoting  poetry 
He  also  extracted  a  large  amount  of  fun  out  of  hi 
new  occupation  —  that  of  "cook."     On  the  whole,  the 
two  weeks  at  boat-building  were  merry  ones,  and  they 
quickly  sped. 

While  the  little  company  were  employed  at  Sanga* 
montown,  a  juggler  gave  an  exhibition  in  the  upper 
room  of  John  Carman's  house.  Another  says  :  "Abe 
went  to  it  dressed  in  a  suit  of  rough  bluejeans.  He 
had  on  shoes,  but  the  trousers  did  not  reach  them  by 
about  twelve  inches ;  and  the  naked  shin,  which  had 
excited  John  Romine's  laughter  years  ago  in  Indiana, 


ANOTHER    TRIP    TO  NEW  ORLEANS.        1 95 

was  still  exposed.  Between  the  roundabout  and  the 
waist  of  the  trousers  there  was  another  wide  space  un- 
covered ;  and,  considering  these  defects,  his  attire  was 
thought  to  be  somewhat  inelegant,  even  in  those 
times.  His  hat,  however,  was  a  great  improvement 
on  coon  skins  and  opossum.  It  was  woollen,  broad- 
brimmed  and  low-crowned.  In  his  hat  '  the  showman 
cooked  eggs.'  Whilst  Abe  was  handing  it  up  to  him, 
after  the  man  had  long  sought  for  a  similar  favor  from 
the  rest  of  the  audience,  he  remarked,  '  Mister,  the 
reason  I  didn't  give  you  my  hat  before  was  out  of  re- 
spect to  your  eggs,  not  care  for  my  hat.' ,: 

As  soon  as  the  boat  was  completed,  a  partial  cargo 
of  barrel-pork,  hogs  and  corn  was  taken  on  board,  and 
the  craft  started  down  the  river.  Offutt  went  in  the 
capacity  of  merchant,  to  make  purchases  along  the 
way.  Just  below  New  Salem,  of  which  we  shall  heai 
and  see  much  hereafter,  the  boat  stuck  fast  on  Rut- 
ledge's  dam  through  one  night  and  part  of  a  day  — 
"  one  end  of  it  hanging  over  the  dam  and  the  other 
sunk  deep  in  the  water  behind.,, 

11  A  pretty  fix  now/'  cried  out  Offutt ;  "  it  will  take 
longer  to  get  out  of  this  scrape  than  it  did  to  build  the 
boat." 

"Guess  not,"  replied  Abraham,  who  took  in  the 
situation  at  a  glance.     "  We  must  unload,  though." 

"Into  the  river,  I  s'pose,"  responded  Offutt. 

"  Borrow  a  boat,  and  transfer  the  cargo  to  it,  and  iet 
us  see  what  can  be  done,"  continued  Abraham. 

This  was  in  the  morning,  after  the  boat  had  "  stuck  " 
through  the  night.  Nearly  all  the  people  of  New 
Salem  had  assembled  on  shore  watching  the  move 
merits 


196       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

» — ^, 

"  Your  boat  will  sink  or  break  in  two  pieces,  if  you 
are  not  in  a  hurry/'  cried  out  a  looker-on.  And  such 
a  result  seemed  inevitable.  For  the  cargo  was  sliding 
backwards,  and  the  peril  increased  with  every  passing 
minute.  But,  under  Abraham's  direction,  the  cargo 
was  soon  shifted  to  a  borrowed  boat,  when  he  imme- 
diately bored  a  large  hole  in  the  bottom  of  that  part  of 
the  boat  extending  over  the  dam.  Then  he  erected 
"queer  machinery"  for  tilting  the  part  of  the  boat 
under  water,  and  holding  it  in  position  until  the  water 
was  emptied  through  the  hole  bored.  Stopping  up  the 
hole  after  the  water  had  run  out  was  the  work  of  only 
a  few  minutes,  when  the  relieved  craft  was  pushed 
over  the  dam,  and  glided  into  the  deep  pool  below 
amidst  the  hurrahs  of  the  many  beholders.  Offutt 
was  particularly  elated. 

"That's  real  skill,  Abe,"  he  cried  ;  "one  in  a  thou- 
sand couldn't  do  that.  Three  cheers  for  Abe  Lin- 
coln," he  shouted,  swinging  his  hat,  and  leading  the 
cheers  vociferously. 

It  was  a  hearty  tribute  to  Abraham's  ingenuity  in 
which  the  observers  joined  without  reserve. 

"When  I  get  back  from  New  Orleans,"  shouted 
Offutt,  turning  to  the  beholders  on  shore,  "  I'll  build  a 
steamboat  to  navigate  the  Sangamon  River,  and  make 
Abe  captain.  I'll  build  it  with  runners  for  ice  and 
rollers  for  shoals  and  dams,  and,  by  thunder,  it  will 
have  to  go,  with  Abe  for  captain." 

This  funny  way  of  putting  it  awoke  another  burst 
of  applause  from  the  spectators,  while  the  tall,  awk- 
ward Abraham  shook  his  sides  with  laughter. 

This  mishap  to  their  craft  set  Abraham  to  thinking 


ANOTHER    TRIP   TO  NEW  ORLEANS.       1 97 

of  ways  to  overcome  the  difficulties  of  navigating 
Western  rivers.  It  was  several  years,  however,  before 
his  thoughts  and  studies  thereupon  took  tangible 
shape  in  the  form  of  an  invention.  After  he  wa? 
elected  President,  the  Washington  correspondent  oi 
the  Boston  Advertiser  wrote  as  follows  concerning 
it:  — 

14  Occupying  an  ordinary  and  common-place  position  in  one  of 
the  show  cases  in  the  large  hall  of  the  Patent  Office  is  one  little 
model  which,  in  ages  to  come,  will  be  prized  as  at  once  one  of 
the  most  curious  and  one  of  the  most  sacred  relics  in  that  vast 
museum  of  unique  and  priceless  things.  This  is  a  plain  and 
simple  model  of  a  steamboat,  roughly  fashioned  in  wood,  by  the 
hand  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  It  bears  date  in  1849.  when  the 
inventor  was  known  simply  as  a  successful  lawyer  and  rising 
politician  of  Central  Illinois.  Neither  his  practice  nor  his  poli- 
tics took  up  so  much  of  his  time  as  to  prevent  him  from  giving 
much  attention  to  contrivances  which  he  hoped  might  be  of 
benefit  to  the  world  and  of  profit  to  himself. 

66  The  design  of  this  invention  is  suggestive  of  one  phase  of 
Abraham  Lincoln's  early  life,  when  he  went  up  and  down  the 
Mississippi  as  a  flat-boatman,  and  became  familiar  with  some  of 
the  dangers  and  inconveniences  attending  the  navigation  of  the 
Western  rivers.  It  is  an  attempt  to  make  it  an  easy  matter  to 
transport  vessels  over  shoals  and  snags  and  sawyers.  The  main 
idea  is  that  of  an  apparatus  resembling  a  noiseless  bellows  placed 
on  each  side  of  the  hull  of  the  craft,  just  below  the  water-line, 
and  worked  by  an  odd  but  not  complicated  system  of  ropes, 
valves  and  pulleys.  When  the  keel  of  the  vessel  grates  against 
the  sand  or  obstruction,  these  bellows  are  to  be  filled  with  air . 
and  thus  buoyed  up,  the  ship  is  expected  to  float  lightly  and 
gayly  over  the  shoal  which  would  otherwise  have  proved  a  serious 
interruption  to  her  voyage. 

"  The  model,  which  is  about  eighteen  or  twenty  inches  long? 
and  has  the  air  of  being  whittled  with  a  knife  out  of  a  shingle 
and  a  cigar-box,  is  built  without  any  elaboration  or  ornament,  or 


I98       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

any  extra  apparatus  beyond  that  necessary  to  show  the  operation 
of  buoying  the  steamer  over  the  obstructions.  Herein  it  differs 
from  very  many  of  the  models  which  share  with  it  the  shelter  of 
the  immense  halls  of  the  Patent  Office,  and  which  are  fashioned 
with  wonderful  nicety  and  exquisite  finish,  as  if  much  of  the 
fabor  and  thought  and  affection  of  a  lifetime  had  been  devoted  to 
their  construction.  This  is  a  model  of  a  different  kind  ;  carved 
as  one  might  imagine  a  retired  rail-splitter  would  whittle,  strongly, 
but  not  smoothly,  and  evidently  made  with  a  view  solely  to  con- 
vey, by  the  simplest  possible  means,  to  the  minds  of  the  patent 
authorities,  an  idea  of  the  purpose  and  plan  of  the  simple  inven- 
tion. The  label  on  the  steamer's  deck  informs  us  that  the  patenx 
was  obtained  ;  but  we  do  not  learn  that  the  navigation  of  the 
Western  rivers  was  revolutionized  by  this  quaint  conception- 
The  modest  little  model  has  reposed  here  sixteen  years  ;  and, 
since  it  found  its  resting-place  here  on  the  shelf,  the  shrewd  in- 
ventor has  found  it  his  task  to  guide  the  Ship  of  State  over 
shoals  more  perilous,  and  obstructions  more  obstinate,  than  any 
prophet  dreamed  of  when  Abraham  Lincoln  wrote  his  bold  auto- 
graph on  the  prow  of  this  miniature  steamer." 

When  the  boat  was  safely  over  the  dam,  in  the 
deep  pool  below,  it  was  re-loaded,  and  then  sped  on 
its  way.  At  Salt  Creek,  OffuJtt  stopped  to  make  a 
purchase  of  live  hogs,  but  the  wild  vicious  animals 
were  determined  not  to  go  on  board ;  and  they  were 
full  of  fight.  Once  on  board,  they  might  make  fearful 
war  upon  each  other,  causing  much  trouble  to  the 
trader  and  his  crew.  After  vainly  trying  to  drive  the 
hogs  towards  the  river,  Abraham  remarked  :  — 

"  It's  no  use  ;  they  are  too  ugly  to  go  where  you 
want  them  to  go." 

"  They  wouldn't  be  hogs,  if  they  did,"  responded 
Offutt.  "  You'll  have  to  get  up  some  sort  of  a  tack- 
ling,  Abe,  to  get  them  aboard,  as  you  got  the  boat 


ANOTHER   TRIP   TO  NEW  ORLEANS.        I(jg 


over  the  dam."  The  last  remark  was  made  partly  in 
praise  of  Abraham,  and  partly  in  a  vein  of  humor. 

"  Sew  up  their  eyes  and  tie  their  legs,"  exclaimed 
Abraham  ;  "  there's  no  other  way  to  get  them  aboard 
and  keep  them  still  after  they  get  there." 

"That's  it,  exactly,  Abe,"  replied  Offutt ;  "I  knew 
that  you  could  find  a  way  out  of  the  trouble.  Let's 
see  you  put  your  theory  in  practice." 

Abraham  seized  a  hog  by  the  ears,  and  directed 
Hanks  to  hold  him  by  the  tail,  while  Offutt  should  tie 
his  legs  and  sew  up  his  eyelids.  "  If  he  fights,  he 
must  fight  in  the  dark,"  he  added. 

The  experiment  proved  successful ;  and  the  hogs 
were  loaded  into  a  cart  and  drawn  to  the  river, 
where  Abraham  took  them  up  in  his  long  arms,  one 
by  one,  and  carried  them  aboard. 

"  Rather  cruel,"  he  said,  "  but  there's  no  help  for  it. 
In  a  battle  with  wild  hogs  we  must  use  war-tactics." 

"You're  a  genius,  Abe,"  said  Offutt;  "ugly  hogs 
and  dams  and  shoals  are  of  little  account  to  you." 

Before  leaving  Salt  Creek,  Abraham  rigged  up 
"curious-looking  sails,"  with  plank  and  cloth  to  in- 
crease their  speed.  The  device  accomplished  his 
purpose;  but  it  "was  a  sight  to  behold,"  as  one  re- 
liable witness  declared.  When  they  "  rushed  down 
through  Beardstown,"  the  craft  presented  such  a  comi* 
cal  appearance  that  "the  people  came  out  and  laughed 
at  them." 

"Let  them  laugh  and  take  it  out  in  laughing,  so 
long  as  the  thing  works  well,"  said  Abraham,  rather 
enjoying  the  singular  exhibition  because  it  attracted 
attention. 


200       PIONEER  HOME   2  0  WHITE  HOUSE. 

They  stopped  only  at  Memphis,  Vicksburg  and 
Natchez,  after  leaving  Salt  Creek,  during  the  whole 
distance  to  New  Orleans,  where  they  arrived  without 
another  drawback.  Offutt  disposed  of  his  goods 
readily,  and  made  a  very  profitable  trip  of  it.  At  the 
same  time,  he  obtained  such  an  insight  into  Abra^ 
ham's  character  and  abilities  that  he  resolved  to  make 
the  best  use  of  him  possible  in  future. 

"  Inhuman,"  exclaimed  Abraham,  one  day,  when 
they  saw  a  gang  of  slaves  chained  together,  and  a 
merciless  driver  cracking  his  whip  about  their  heads. 
"  A  nation  that  tolerates  such  inhumanity  will  have  to 
pay  for  it  some  day," 

"They  are  used  to  it,"  replied  Offutt,  "and  mind 
no  more  about  it  than  cattle." 

"What  if  they  don't?"  retorted  Abraham.  "You 
can't  make  cattle  of  men  without  being  inhuman. 
I  tell  you,  the  nation  that  does  it  will  be  cursed." 

"Not  in  our  day,"  remarked  Offutt. 

"In  somebody's  day,  though,"  responded  Abraham, 
promptly. 

That  Abraham's  visits  to  New  Orleans  served  to 
increase  his  hostility  to  slavery,  there  can  be  no 
doubt,  especially  his  visit  in  1831.  For  John  Hanks 
said,  thirty  years  afterwards,  recalling  the  incidents 
of  that  memorable  trip:  — 

"There  it  was  we  saw  negroes  chained,  maltreated, 
whipped  and  scourged.  Lincoln  saw  it,  and  his  heart 
bled.  It  made  him  sad,  he  looked  bad,  felt  bad,  was 
thoughtful  and  abstracted.  I  can  say,  knowing  it 
that  it  was  on  this  trip  that  he  formed  his  opinions  0/ 
slavery.     It  ran  its  iron  into  him  then  and  there,  — 


ANOTHER    TRIP    TO  NEW  ORLEANS,       201 

May,  1 83 1.  I  have  heard  him  say  so,  often  and 
often." 

Providence  was  leading  Abraham  in  a  way  that 
he  knew  not,  disciplining  him  for  the  day  when  he 
would  be  forced  to  grapple  with  the  system  of  Amer- 
ican slavery,  to  overthrow  it.  All  such  incidents  as 
these  become  more  interesting  and  important  in 
their  providential  connection  with  his  future  public 
career. 

In  June,  Offutt,  with  his  men,  was  ready  to  return, 
and  he  engaged  passage  for  all  on  a  steamer  up  the 
Mississippi  to  St.  Louis.  On  the  way  up  the  river, 
Offutt  surprised  Abraham  by  saying : 

"Abe,  I  think  you  can  sell  goods  for  me;  how 
would  you  like  it  ?" 

"What  kind  of  goods ?"  Abraham  asked. 

"Store  goods,  such  as  country  stores  keep,"  Offutt 
answered.  "  How  would  you  like  to  run  my  store  at 
New  Salem?" 

"I  should  like  it  well  enough  provided  I  could 
do  it." 

"You  can  do  it  well  enough  ;  I  have  no  fear  of  that 
If  you'll  say  the  word,  I  will  put  you  in  charge  of  my 
store  at  New  Salem." 

"I'll  say  the  word,  then,"  continued  Abraham,  "if 
we  can  agree  on  the  terms." 

They  did  agree  upon  the  terms,  and,  before  they 
parted  company  at  St.  Louis,  it  was  arranged  to  trans- 
form Abraham  into  a  "storekeeper."  Offutt  had  so 
exalted  an  idea  of  Abraham's  tact  and  ability,  that  he 
was  prepared  to  commit  almost  any  trust  to  his 
keeping.     Abraham   was   to   return    home,   visit   hi? 


202        PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

, _ — _ -■  — 

parents,  and   then   repair  to   New   Salem  to  be  in. 
stalled  over  a  country  store. 

At  St.  Louis,  Offutt's  business  made  it  necessary  for 
him  to  separate  from  his  efficient  trio ;  so  Abraham, 
Hanks,  and  Johnston  started  on  foot  for  the  interior  of 
Illinois.  When  they  reached  Edwardsville,  twenty- 
five  miles  from  St.  Louis,  Hanks  took  the  road  to 
Springfield,  and  Abraham  and  Johnston  took  that  to 
Cole's  County,  whither  Thomas  Lincoln  removed  after 
Abraham  left  home. 

A  few  days  after  Abraham  reached  his  father's 
house  in  Cole's  County,  a  famous  wrestler,  by  the 
name  of  Daniel  Needham,  called  to  see  him.  Need- 
ham  had  heard  of  Abraham's  great  strength,  and 
that  he  was  an  expert  wrestler,  and  he  desired  to 
see  him. 

"  S'pose  we  try  a  hug,"  suggested  Needham. 

"  No  doubt  you  can  throw  me,"  answered  Abraham 
'You  are  in  practice,  and  I  am  not." 

"Then  you'll  not  try  it?"  continued  Needham. 

"  Not  much  sport  in  being  laid  on  my  back,"  was 
Abraham's  evasive  answer. 

"  It  remains  to  be  seen  wr^o  will  lay  on  his  back," 
suggested  Needham.     "S'pose  you  make  the  trial." 

By  persistent  urging  Abraham  finally  consented  to 
meet  Needham,  at  a  specified  place  and  time,  according 
to  the  custom  that  prevailed.  Abraham  was  true  to 
his  promise,  met  the  bully,  and  threw  him  twice  with 
no  great  difficulty. 

Needham  was  both  disappointed  and  chagrined.  His 
pride  was  greatly  humbled ;  and  his  wrath  was  not  a 
little  exercised. 


ANOTHER    TRIP    TO  NEW  ORLEANS.       203 

"  You  have  thrown  me  twice,  Lincoln,  but  you  can't 
whip  me,"  he  said. 

"I  don't  want  to  whip  you,  whether  I  can  or  not," 
Abraham  replied  magnanimously ;  "  and  I  don't  want 
to  get  whipped;"  and  the  closing  sentence  was  spoken 
jocosely. 

"Well,  I  stump  you  to  whip  me,"  Needham  cried, 
thinking  that  Lincoln  was  unwilling  to  undertake  it. 
"  Throwing  a  man  is  one  thing  and  thrashing  him  is 
another." 

"  You  are  right,  my  friend ;  and  I've  no  special  desire 
to  do  either,"  answered  Abraham. 

Needham  continued  to  press  him,  whereupon  Lincoln 
*>aid  : 

"  Needham,  are  you  satisfied  that  I  can  throw  you? 
If  you  are  not,  and  must  be  convinced  through  a  thrash- 
ing, I  will  do  that,  too,  for  your  sake." 

This  was  putting  the  matter  practically  enough  to 
open  the  bully's  eyes,  which  was  all  Abraham  hoped  to 
accomplish.  He  was  willing  to  show  his  strength  by 
wrestling  to  please  his  companions  and  get  a  little  sport 
out  of  it ;  but  he  despised  a  bully  like  Needham,  and 
considered  such  encounters  for  any  purpose  but  sport 
as  beneath  his  notice.  Needham  put  the  proper  inter- 
pretation upon  Abraham's  words,  and,  considering 
*  discretion  the  better  part  of  valor,"  he  withdrew  as 
gracefully  as  possible. 

We  shall  turn  next  to  Abraham's  success  as  a  coun- 
try merchant 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

IN  A   PIONEER   STORE. 

|BOUT  the  first  of  August,  183 1,  Abraham 
met  Offutt  at  New  Salem  as  previously  ar- 
ranged. His  employer  had  collected  a 
quantity  of  goods  at  Beardstown,  awaiting 
transportation.  Until  the  goods  arrived,  Abraham  had 
nothing  to  do,  but  loitered  about  the  town,  then  num- 
bering only  from  twelve  to  fifteen  habitations.  Some 
of  the  people  recognized  him  as  the  ingenious  fellow 
who  engineered  the  boat  over  Rutledge's  dam  a  few 
months  before ;  and  they  scraped  acquaintance  with 
him  at  once. 

On  the  day  of  the  election  he  was  loitering  about 
the  polling  place,  when  one  of  the  judges  remarked  to 
Minter  Graham,  the  schoolmaster,  "We  are  short  of  a 
clerk  ;  what  shall  we  do  ? " 

The  schoolmaster  replied,  "  Perhaps  the  tall  stranger 
yonder  can  write ;  and  maybe  he  will  serve  in  that 
capacity/ ' 

"Possibly,"  responded  the  judge,  as  he  advanced 
towards  Abraham,  and  said :  — 

"  Can  you  write  ?  "  It  must  be  remembered  that,  at 
that  time  in  that  region,  many  people  could  neither 


IN  A   PIONEER  STORE.  205 

read  nor  write,  so  that  getting  a  clerk  was  not  an  easy 
matter. 

"  Yes,  a  little/'  answered  Abraham. 

"  Will  you  act  as  clerk  of  the  election  to-day  ? " 

"  Yes,  I'll  try/'  was  Abraham's  modest  reply.  "I 
will  do  the  best  I  can,  if  you  so  request." 

"Well,  it  will  accommodate  us  very  much  if  you 
will,"  continued  the  judge,  conducting  the  stranger  to 
the  polls.  As  yet,  Abraham  had  not  announced  to  any 
one  that  he  was  soon  to  preside  over  the  store  of  New 
Salem. 

That  he  discharged  the  duties  of  the  office  accept- 
ably on  that  day,  we  have  positive  evidence  ;  for  Min- 
ter  Graham,  the  schoolmaster,  who  was  clerk  also, 
says  :  — • 

"  He  performed  the  duties  with  great  facility,  much 
fairness  and  honesty  and  impartiality.  This  was  the 
first  official  act  of  his  life.  I  clerked  with  him  on  the 
same  day,  and  at  the  same  polls.  The  election-books 
are  now  in  the  city  of  Springfield,  Illinois,  where  they 
can  be  seen  and  inspected  any  day." 

Dr.  Nelson  of  New  Salem  was  about  to  remove  to 
Texas,  and  had  built  a  flat-boat  on  which  to  convey 
his  goods  and  family  thither.  He  was  ready  to  start 
when  Abraham  was  waiting  frr  the  arrival  of  Offutt's 
merchandize.  The  Sangamon  river  was  at  best  a  tur- 
bulent stream,  and  was  then  swollen  to  overflowing, 
60  that  the  doctor  required  a  pilot  to  Beardstown. 
Some  one  suggested  to  him  the  young  fellow  who  took 
the  boat  over  Rutledge's  dam  ;  and  Abraham  was  ac 
cordingly  engaged.  "He  piloted  the  flat-boat  success 
fully  to  Beardstown       though  he  said  the  river  over 


20(5       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

flowed  its  banks  so  unprecedentedly  for  that  season  of 
the  year,  that  he  sometimes  floated  over  the  prairie, 
three  miles  from  the  channel.  At  Beardstown  he  re 
ceived  his  pay,  and  left  the  doctor  to  run  down  the 
Illinois  while  he  returned  on  foot  to  New  Salem. 

On  the  arrival  of  Offutt's  merchandize,  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  village  understood  what  the  tall  stranger's 
business  was  in  town.  For  Abraham  proceeded  at 
once  to  unpack  the  goods,  and  arrange  them  for  ex- 
hibition in  the  store.  There  were  groceries,  dry  goods, 
hardwares,  stonewares,  earthenwares,  cups  and  saucers, 
plates,  knives  and  forks,  boots  and  shoes,  coffee,  tea, 
sugar,  molasses,  butter,  gunpowder,  tobacco,  with  other 
articles  too  numerous  to  mention,  including  the  in- 
evitable whiskey,  which  nearly  everybody  except  Abra- 
ham considered  indispensable. 

Within  a  few  days  Abraham  was  well  under  way 
with  Offutt's  commercial  enterprise.  The  new  goods 
drew  customers,  and  the  new  clerk  attracted  attention. 
He  was  " jokey,"  agreeable  and  social,  "worth  a  dozen 
such  fellers  as  Offutt's  other  man,"  as  one  of  the  citi- 
zens put  it. 

Offutt's  business  elsewhere  did  not  allow  him  to 
remain  at  New  Salem,  though  he  was  there  long 
enough  to  risk  another  venture.  He  leased  the  mill 
of  Cameron  and  Rutledge  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  and 
put  it  in  charge  of  Abraham  along  with  the  store.  At 
the  same  time  he  hired  William  G.  Green  for  assistant 
clerk  in  the  store,  that  Abraham  might  divide  his  time 
between  the  two  enterprises. 

Offutt  was  a  great  talker,  and  some  people  said  he 
was   " rattle-brained "   and  "harum-scarum."     But  no 


IN  A    PIONEER  STORE,  2QJ 

one  claimed  that  Abraham  was  like  him,  not  even 
Offutt  himself,  for  the  latter  was  wont  to  magnify  the 
abilities  and  fidelity  of  his  clerk  extravagantly.  His 
confidence  in  him  was  well-nigh  boundless,  and  he 
drew  largely  upon  the  dictionary  for  words  to  express 
his  admiration  of  the  new  storekeeper.  He  did  not 
hesitate  to  say,  "  Abe  knows  more  than  any  man  in 
the  United  States."  If  confronted  by  any  one  who 
dared  to  dispute  his  assertion,  he  would  supplement 
his  statement  by  another:  "  Abe  will  be  President  of 
the  United  States  some  time.  Now  remember  what 
I  say."  Between  engineering  the  boat  over  Rutledge's 
dam  and  the  eulogiums  of  Offutt,  Abraham  was  quite 
grandly  introduced  to  the  inhabitants  of  New  Salem. 
It  is  not  strange  that  he  entered  upon  his  labors  there 
with  flying  colors,  causing  the  store  to  become  the 
centre  of  attraction  in  that  township.  New  customers 
were  multiplied,  and  old  ones  became  even  more 
reliable  patrons. 

Then,  in  Illinois,  the  merchant  of  the  town  was 
second  to  no  citizen  in  importance.  Abraham  stepped 
at  once  into  this  position  of  notoriety ;  and  then,  in 
addition,  his  knowledge,  affability,  and  uprightness, 
contributed  to  make  him  a  still  more  important  per- 
sonage. 

"The  best  feller  weVe  had  in  the  store  yet,*' 
remarked  Jason  Duncan  to  a  companion  named 
Carman  ;  "and  he  knows  a  thing  or  two." 

"Not  so  much  as  Offutt  thinks  he  does,"  replied 
Carman  ;  "but  it's  fun  to  hear  him  talk." 

"And  he  is  so  accommodating  and  honest;"  con- 
tinued Duncan.     "  Mother  says  she'd  trust  him  with 


208       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

anything  because  he's  so  honest.  She  paid  him  a  few 
cents  too  much,  and  he  brought  it  back  to  her.,, 

"Not  many  on  'em  who'd  do  that,"  replied  Carman. 
44  Every  body  says  that  he  gives  Scriptur'  weight  and 
measure." 

"And  he  is  none  of  your  high-fly  gentry,"  added 
Duncan,  "if  he  does  keep  store.  He  knows  more  in 
half  an  hour  than  Offutt's  other  man  did  in  a  week." 

"Yes,  and  he's  drawing  customers  that  haven't 
traded  there  before,  just  because  he  does  the  thing 
that  is  right.  Everybody  knows  that  he  won't  lie  nor 
cheat ;  and  they  believe  just  what  he  says,  and  they 
like  to  trade  with  him  on  that  account." 

"Offutt  was  a  fortunate  man  to  get  him  to  keep  his 
store,"  continued  Duncan.  "It  will  be  money  in  his 
pocket." 

"And  he  seems  to  attend  to  the  business  just  as 
closely  as  he  would  if  it  was  his  own,"  said  Carman; 
"he  is  there  early  and  late,  and  he  is  always  reading 
when  he  has  nothing  else  to  do." 

"That's  because  he  is  honest,"  replied  William; 
"a  dishonest  clerk  wouldn't  care  whether  the  busi- 
ness prospered  or  not,  nor  whether  people  were 
pleased  or  not.  Offutt  is  off  so  much  that  he  would 
not  know  whether  a  clerk  was  faithful  or  not,  and 
it's  lucky  for  him  that  he  hit  upon  Abe  as  he  did." 

"And  it's  about  as  lucky  for  us.  I  tell  you  how 
'tis  :  that  store  is  now  just  about  the  best  place  to 
go  to  that  there  is  anywhere  about.  Abe  is  the 
greatest  fellow  on  stories  that  I  ever  heard,  and 
many  of  them  are  real  facts  of  histry.  You  ought  to 
I  ear    him  tell   about  Washington   and    Franklin  and 


IN  A   PIONEER  STORE.  20$ 

Clay,   as   he   did   the  other  day.     He  knows  a  heap 
more  about  such  things  than  any  body  about  here." 

Two  or  three  incidents  in  this  place  will  show  what 
reason  existed  for  such  disrussions  as  the  foregoing 
concerning  Abraham. 

One  day  he  sold  a  bill  of  goods  to  Mrs.  Duncan, 
amounting  to  two  dollars  and  six  cents.  On  running 
over  his  account  again  in  the  evening,  he  found  that 
Mrs.  Duncan  paid  him  six  cents  too  much.  Imme- 
diately on  closing  the  store  and  locking  the  door  for 
the  night,  he  started  for  Mrs.  Duncan's  house,  more 
than  two  miles  away,  to  carry  the  six  cents  to  her. 
He  slept  better  that  night  for  the  walk  and  honesty. 

On  another  occasion  a  woman  came  into  the  store 
late  in  the  evening,  just  as  he  was  closing,  for  half  a 
pound  of  tea.  The  tea  was  weighed  and  delivered,  and 
he  left  for  the  night.  On  returning  in  the  morning  he 
noticed  a  four-ounce  weight  was  on  the  scales,  instead 
of  an  eight-ounce ;  and  he  knew  at  once  that  he  had 
given  the  customer  a  quarter  of  a  pound  of  tea,  instead 
of  a  half  pound.  He  weighed  another  quarter  of  a 
pound,  closed  the  store,  and  delivered  the  tea  to  the 
woman,  before  commencing  the  labors  of  the  day. 
Such  acts  of  uprightness  won  universal  confidence  ; 
and  they  formed  the  subject  of  conversation  in  many 
social  gatherings. 

One  day  a  bully  entered  the  store  when  Abraham 
was  waiting  upon  two  or  three  female  customers.  He 
belched  out  profanity  and  vulgarity,  regardless  of  the 
presence  of  ladies.  Abraham  leaned  over  the  counter, 
and  whispered,  "  Shut  up ;  don't  talk  so  in  the  pres- 
ence of  ladies/' 


2IO       PIONEER  HOME    TO   WHITE    HOUSE. 


The  fellow  was  too  full  of  whiskey  to  be  suppressed 
in  that  way,  and  he  became  more  profane  and  vulgar 
than  before. 

"I'd  like  to  see  the  man  who'll  stop  me  from  saying 
what  I'm  a  mind  to.  I've  wanted  to  thrash  you  for  a 
long  time." 

Abraham  simply  replied,  "  Wait  until  these  ladies 
have  gone,  and  I'll  satisfy  you." 

The  bully  was  raving ;  and  the  ladies  soon  retired. 
"  Now,"  exclaimed  Abraham,  springing  over  the 
counter,  "we'll  see  whether  you'll  talk  such  stuff  in 
this  store  before  ladies." 

"  Come  on,  long-legs,"  the  bully  shouted. 

"  If  you  must  be  whipped,  I  may  as  well  do  it  as  any 
other  man,"  continued  Abraham,  as  he  collared  the 
fellow,  and  put  him  out  of  doors.  The  bully  grappled 
with  him,  whereupon  Abraham  threw  him  upon  his 
back,  and,  snatching  a  handful  of  smart-weed,  rubbed 
it  into  his  face  until  the  fellow  bellowed  with  pain,  and 
promised  to  behave.  Then  Abraham  allowed  him  to 
get  up ;  and  showed  his  real  kindness  of  heart  by  get- 
ting water  and  washing  his  face,  to  relieve  him  of  his 
distress.  The  outcome  of  this  affair  was,  that  the  bully 
was  a  better  man  himself  from  that  time,  and  be- 
came a  fast  friend  of  Abraham,  who  was  as  much  of  a 
stickler  for  politeness  to  ladies  as  he  was  for  honesty 
to  all. 

Minter  Graham,  the  schoolmaster,  was  very  intimate 
with  Abraham.  He  was  in  the  store  one  day  when 
Abraham  said  to  him : 

"I  want  to  study  English  grammar;  I  never  did." 

"You've  not  much    time  for  it,  I  judge,"  replied 


IN  A   PIONEER  STORE.  211 

Graham.  "  Between  mill  and  store,  your  time  is  pretty 
well  occupied." 

"Well,  I  have  some  leisure  moments  on  some  days, 
and  can  always  find  time  at  night  when  folks  are  in 
bed/' 

"  You  propose  to  turn  night  into  day?"  responded 
Graham,  inquiringly.  "Too  much  of  such  business 
will  wear  you  out  ? " 

"I'll  risk  it  if  I  can  get  a  grammar,"  replied  Abra- 
ham.    "  The  trouble  is  to  find  a  grammar  about  here." 

"  I  know  where  there  is  one,"  said  Graham. 

"Where?" 

"  Six  miles  from  here,  at  Vaner's,  is  a  copy  of  Kirk 
ham's  Grammar." 

"  I'll  buy  or  borrow  it  before  I'm  much  older,"  re- 
marked  Abraham.  "The  time  may  come  when  I  may 
want  to  use  it." 

"  If  you  ever  expect  to  go  before  the  public  in  any 
capacity,  it  will  be  a  good  thing  for  you,"  responded 
Graham.  At  this  time,  Graham  had  inferred  from 
certain  remarks  of  Abraham  that  he  was  looking  for- 
ward to  a  more  public  career. 

The  result  of  this  interview  was,  that,  Abraham 
walked  six  miles  and  borrowed  the  grammar,  the  study 
of  which  he  commenced  at  once,  improving  leisure 
moments  in  the  store,  and  sitting  up  late  at  night  to 
pursue  his  task. 

The  grammar  rather  interfered  with  the  good  time 
young  men  had  with  Abraham  in  the  store.  Instead 
of  spending  leisure  moments  in  entertaining  the  com- 
pany, Kirkham's  Grammar  entertained  him.  Lamon 
says,  "  Sometimes  when  business  was  not  particularly 


212        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

brisk,  he  would  lie  under  a  shade-tree  in  front  of  the 
store,  and  pore  over  the  book ;  at  other  times,  a  cus- 
tomer would  find  him  stretched  on  the  counter  intently- 
engaged  the  same  way.  But  the  store  was  a  bad  place 
for  study ;  and  he  was  often  seen  quietly  slipping  out 
of  the  village,  as  if  he  wished  to  avoid  observation, 
when,  if  successful  in  getting  off  alone,  he  would  spend 
hours  in  the  woods,  'mastering  a  book,'  or  in  a  state 
of  profound  abstraction.  He  kept  up  his  old  habit  of 
sitting  up  late  at  night ;  but,  as  lights  were  as  neces- 
sary to  his  purpose  as  they  were  expensive,  the  village 
cooper  permitted  him  to  sit  in  his  shop,  where  he 
burnt  the  shavings,  and  kept  a  blazing  fire  to  read  by, 
when  every  one  else  was  in  bed.  The  Greens  lent  him 
books ;  the  schoolmaster  gave  him  instructions  in  the 
store,  on  the  road,  or  in  the  meadows  ;  every  visitor  to 
New  Salem  who  made  the  least  pretensions  to  scholar- 
ship was  waylaid  by  Abe,  and  required  to  explain 
something  which  he  could  not  understand.  The  result 
of  it  all  was,  that  the  village  and  the  surrounding  coun- 
try wondered  at  his  growth  in  knowledge,  and  he  soon 
became  as  famous  for  the  goodness  of  his  understand- 
ing as  for  the  muscular  power  of  his  body,  and  the 
unfailing  humor  of  his  talk.,, 

Kirkham's  Grammar  appears  to  have  given  him  a 
new  impulse  after  knowledge  ;  and  his  companions  felt 
that  they  lost  considerable  enjoyment  in  consequence. 
Some  of  them  had  a  poor  opinion  of  Kirkham. 

"  Studying  grammar,  yet,"  remarked  Alley  in  a  con- 
temptuous way. 

"  Yes ;  I  want  to  know  something  about  it  I  never 
did" 


IN  A   PIONEER  STORE.  21 3 

"Nor  I,  and  that  ain't  the  worst  on't;"  and  Alley 
laughed  as  he  said  it. 

"Well,  I  intend  to  know  a  little  of  it,"  added  Abra- 
ham. "  It  is  rather  dry,  but  I  am  determined  to  master 
it,  if  I  can.  I  want,  at  least,  to  discover  whether  I  am 
a  common  noun  or  not." 

"You're  an  uncommon  noun,  Abe,"  said  Alleyf 
meaning  to  compliment  his  friend,  at  the  same  time 
that  he  got  off  a  pun. 

"Your  word  for  it." 

"  Of  course,  my  word  for  it.  But  I  am  quite  sure 
that  if  there  is  anything  in  that  book,  you  will  get  it 
out." 

"  But  really,  Alley,  this  is  a  very  important  study, 
and  I  think  that  every  one  ought  to  understand  it,  if 
they  can." 

"  Not  many  know  anything  about  it." 

"  And  that  does  not  prove  that  it  is  useless.  There 
are  a  great  many  things  of  importance  that  many 
people  know  nothing  about." 

"  That's  so  ;  but  most  people  have  got  along  without 
it.  My  father  and  mother  never  studied  it  in  their 
lives,  and  I  never  did,  and  we've  got  along  well  enough 
so  far  without  it." 

"  Perhaps  you  would  have  got  along  better  with  it. 
I've  learned  enough  already  to  be  of  great  service  to 
me,  and  I  intend  to  know  more  yet." 

"But  it  is  only  a  little  time  that  you  get  here,"  sug- 
gested Alley.  "Just  as  you  get  at  it  somebody  comes. 
I  don't  think  much  of  that." 

"We  don't  all  think  alike,"  responded  Abraham. 

"That's  a  fact;  I'm  pretty  sure  that  if  you  thought 


214       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

as  I  do,  you  wouldn't  be  troubling  your  brains  over 
that  grammar.' ' 

"  Perhaps  nobody  else  would,  and  the  '  King's  Eng 
lish'  would  be  shockingly  murdered.  We  should 
have  another  Babel  almost." 

"  How's  that  ?  For  the  life  of  m<t,  I  can't  see  any 
particular  good  that  comes  of  studying  grammar." 

"That  is  because  you  do  not  know  even  the  defini- 
tion of  it,"  replied  Abraham.  "  Grammar  is  the  art 
of  speaking  and  writing  the  English  language  with 
propriety.     And  that  shows  what  good  it  does." 

"  Perhaps  it  does." 

"  Of  course  it  does,  whether  you  can  see  it  or  not ; 
and  I  am  willing  to  study  for  it  by  day  and  night." 

"  I  should  think  it  was  about  enough  to  study  by 
day,  and  let  the  nights  go,"  said  Alley,  demurely. 

"There  is  where  we  don't  think  alike  again.  It 
would  take  me  a  long  time  to  master  this  grammar, 
if  I  should  study  only  by  leisure  moments  in  the 
daytime.  I  have  used  up  from  two  to  three  hours 
over  it  every  night." 

"Just  like  you,  Abe." 

"Just  like  every  poor  fellow  like  me,  who  must  do 
so,  or  know  little  or  nothing.  Dr.  Franklin  carried  a 
book  in  his  pocket,  to  study  when  he  could,  and  he 
kept  one  by  his  side  in  the  printing-office  to  read 
every  minute  he  had  to  spare." 

"How  do  you  know  that?  Were  you  there  ? "  and 
Alley's  roguishness  appeared  in  his  expressive  eye. 

"Probably,"  answered  Abraham,  in  the  same  vein 
of  remark. 

"But  did  you  ever  read  the  Life  of  Dr.  Franklin?" 


IN  A    PIONEER  STORE.  21 5 


"Certainly,  several  years  ago ;  and  if  he  had  not 
done  just  what  you  think  is  quite  foolish,  he  would 
have  made  candles  all  his  life.,, 

"And  that  would  be  shedding  light  on  the  world, 
I'm  sure,"  said  Alley,  with  an  attempt  at  punning. 
"Lucky  that  somebody  was  willing  to  make  candles." 

But  no  bantering  or  pleas  for  sport  could  separate 
Abraham  from  his  grammar.  Kirkham  was  his  boon 
companion  in  a  more  important  sense  than  Green, 
Duncan,  Alley,  Carman,  Herndon,  and  all  the  rest  of 
the  New  Salem  associates. 

It  became  customary  for  the  citizens  to  take  their 
visitors  over  to  Offutt's  store  to  introduce  them  to 
Abraham,  of  whom  the  whole  village  were  proud. 
Richard  Yates  came  to  town  to  visit  friends,  and  they 
took  him  over  to  the  store  to  make  Abraham's 
acquaintance.  This  was  the  Richard  Yates,  who, 
subsequently,  became  famous  as  a  public  man.  He 
became  Governor  of  Illinois  when  Abraham  became 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  did  noble  service 
for  the  country  in  conquering  the  "Southern  Re- 
bellion." Abraham  was  soon  engaged  in  close  con- 
versation upon  various  subjects,  and  while  they  were 
talking,  Alley  and  Yates*  friend  left. 

The  dinner-time  arrived  before  they  were  aware 
that  nearly  an  hour  had  passed  since  they  were  in 
troduced  to  each  other.  Abraham  invited  his  new 
acquaintance  to  dine  with  him,  and  they  proceeded 
to  the  house  where  he  boarded — a  low,  rough,  log- 
house. 

"  Aunt  Lizzie,"  said  Abraham,  "  I  have  brought 
some  company  home  to  dinner." 


210        PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  I'm  glad  of  it,  Abe,  if  you'll  take  me  as  you  find 
me,"  replied  the  old  lady,  addressing  her  remark 
partly  to  Abraham,  and  partly  to  the  visitor. 

"  No  apologies  are  necessary/'  said  Yates. 

"  No,  none  at  all,"  added  Abraham. 

The  dinner  was  on  the  table,  and  it  was  a  very 
plain  one.  There  was  plenty  of  bread,  and  milk 
enough  for  the  company,  and  the  addition  of  an- 
other bowl  and  spoon  provided  a  dinner  for  visitor 
and  all. 

There  were  quite  a  number  of  members  of  the  family, 
boarders  and  children,  and  the  aged  matron  waited 
upon  the  table,  pouring  the  milk,  and  passing  a 
brimming  bowl  to  each.  When  Abraham  was  waited 
upon,  by  some  mishap,  his  bowl  slipped  and  rolled 
over  upon  the  floor,  dashing  it  to  pieces,  and  covering 
the  floor  with  its  contents. 

"O  dear  me!"  exclaimed  the  old  lady,  in  great 
trouble  ;  "  that  was  all  my  fault." 

"  Perhaps  not,"  said  Abraham. 

"  It  surely  was,"  she  answered.  "  I  am  so  care- 
less." 

"  Well,  Aunt  Lizzie,  we'll  not  discuss  whose  fault 
it  is,"  continued  Abraham;  "only  if  it  don't  trouble 
you,  it  don't  trouble  me." 

"  That's  you,  Abe,  sure,"  replied  Aunt  Lizzie, 
"You're  ready  to  comfort  a  body." 

"A  very  good  trait,"  said  Yates,  who  was  both 
amused  and  enlightened  by  the  accident. 

"  Never  mind,  Aunt  Lizzie,"  continued  Abraham, 
"  you  have  the  worst  of  it ;  but  I  am  really  sorry  that 
your  bowl  is  broken.     I  don't  care  so  much  for  the 


IN  A   PIONEER  STORE.  2\J 


milk,  as  there  is  plenty  more  where  that  came  from. 
Much  worse  things  happen  sometimes." 

By  this  time  Aunt  Lizzie  had  another  bowl  filled  for 
Abraham,  and  the  company  proceeded  to  eat  their 
dinner,  while  the  old  lady  gathered  up  the  fragments 
of  the  broken  bowl,  and  wiped  up  the  floor. 

Here  Abraham  exhibited  a  trait  of  character  for 
which  he  was  distinguished  from  boyhood.  He  dis- 
liked to  make  trouble  for  any  one,  and  wanted  to  see 
all  persons  at  ease.  Hence  he  was  accommodating, 
never  disposed  to  find  fault,  inclined  to  overlook  the 
mistakes  and  foibles  of  others.  Also,  his  readiness 
to  assist  the  needy,  and  comfort  the  distressed  and 
unfortunate,  proceeded  in  part  from  this  quality. 
It  was  made  up  of  gentlemanly  bearing,  affability, 
generosity,  and  a  true  regard  for  the  welfare  and 
happiness  of  others.  A  rare  character  is  this,  though 
it  is  always  needed,  and  is  popular  wherever  it  is 
appreciated. 

We  were  absorbed  in  the  discussion  of  Abraham 
and  Alley  about  the  grammar,  and  were  inter- 
rupted by  the  arrival  of  Yates,  in  consequence  of 
which  the  conversation  was  broken  off.  We  will  only 
add,  that  Abraham  became  a  very  good  grammarian 
by  dint  of  perseverance.  He  did  not  cast  aside  the 
old  grammar  until  he  had  mastered  it,  and  it  was  all 
accomplished  while  he  was  the  most  faithful  clerk 
that  the  store  at  New  Salem  ever  had.  He  found 
time  enough  at  odd  moments  during  the  day,  and 
took  enough  out  of  his  sleeping  hours  at  night, 
within  the  space  of  a  few  months,  to  acquire  all  the 
knowledge  of  grammar  that  he  ever  possessed. 


2X8       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

We  should  say,  however,  that  his  companion, 
William  Green,  rendered  him  assistance  in  this 
study.  William  had  some  knowledge  of  grammar, 
and  he  cheerfully  aided  Abraham  all  that  he  could. 
The  latter  always  said  that  William  taught  hirr* 
grammar,  although  William  still  affirms  "that  he 
seemed  to  master  it,  as  it  were,  by  intuition." 

It  is  probable  that  Kirkham's  Grammar  laid  the 
foundation,  in  part,  of  Abraham's  future  character. 
It  taught  him  the  rudiments  of  his  native  language, 
and  thus  opened  the  golden  gate  of  knowledge. 
There  is  much  in  his  experience  at  this  point  to 
remind  us  of  that  of  Alexander  Murray,  the  world- 
renowned  linguist.  His  father  was  too  poor  to  send 
him  to  school,  or  to  provide  him  with  books.  The 
Bible,  and  a  catechism  containing  the  alphabet,  were 
all  the  volumes  in  the  family,  and  the  latter  Alex- 
ander was  not  allowed  to  see  except  on  the  Sabbath. 
During  the  week  his  father  would  draw  the  letters  on 
the  back  of  an  old  wool-card  "  with  the  black  end  ot 
an  extinguished  heather-stem  or  root,  snatched  from 
the  fire."  In  this  way  he  learned  the  alphabet,  and 
became  a  reader.  At  twelve  years  of  age  a  friend 
presented  him  with  a  copy  of  Salmon's  Grammar, 
which  he  mastered  in  an  incredibly  short  period ;  and 
here  commenced  his  progress  in  earnest.  He  bor- 
rowed a  Latin  grammar  and  mastered  it.  Then  a 
French  grammar  was  studied  with  success.  Then  the 
Greek  was  taken  in  hand,  and  thus  on  till  all  the 
Oriental  and  Northern  languages  were  familiar  to 
him.  And  the  study  of  Salmon's  Grammar  laid  the 
foundation  for  all  this.     That  was  the  key  to  the  vast 


IN  A    PIONEER  STORE.  219 

treasures  of  knowledge  that  were  opened  before  him. 
By  making  himself  master  of  that,  he  unlocked  the 
temple  of  wisdom. 

And  so  the  grammar  that  Abraham  studied  ex- 
erted a  great  influence  upon  his  character  ind 
destiny, 


CHAPTER    XVII. 
STILL    A    CLERK. 

[HERE  was  a  "gang  "  of  young  and  middle- 
aged  men  in  New  Salem,  called  the  "  Clary 
Grove  Boys,"  who  had  become  a  terror  to 
the  people.  They  were  never  more  flour- 
ishing than  they  were  when  Abraham  became  a  citizen 
of  the  town.  They  prided  themselves  upon  their 
strength  and  courage,  and  had  an  established  custom 
of  "  initiating  "  new  comers  of  the  male  sex  by  giving 
them  a  flogging.  Perhaps  they  were  no  more  ma- 
licious than  a  class  of  college  students  who  perform 
similar  operations  upon  Freshmen,  though  they  were 
rougher  and  more  immoral.  Such  "  gangs  "  existed 
in  different  parts  of  the  West  at  that  time,  a  coalition 
of  ignorance,  rowdyism  and  brute  force.  One  writer 
says  of  the  "  Clary  Grove  Boys  "  :  — 

"  Although  there  never  was  under  the  sun  a  more 
generous  parcel  of  ruffians,  a  stranger's  introduction 
was  likely  to  be  the  most  unpleasant  part  of  his  ac- 
quaintance with  them.  In  fact,  one  of  the  objects  of 
their  association  was  to  '  initiate  or  naturalize  new- 
comers,' as  they  termed  the  amiable  proceedings 
which  they   took  by  way  of  welcoming  any  one  am- 


STILL   A    CLERK.  221 


bitious  of  admittance  to  the  society  of  New  Salem. 
They  first  bantered  the  gentleman  to  run  a  foot-race, 
jump,  pitch  the  mall,  or  wrestle  ;  and  if  none  of  these 
propositions  seemed  agreeable  to  him,  they  would  re- 
quest to  know  what  he  would  do  in  case  another  gen- 
tleman should  pull  his  nose  or  squirt  tobacco-juice  in 
his  face.  If  he  did  not  seem  entirely  decided  in  his 
views  as  to  what  should  properly  be  done  in  such  a 
contingency,  perhaps  he  would  be  nailed  in  a  hogs- 
head and  rolled  down  New  Salem  hill ;  perhaps  his 
ideas  would  be  brightened  by  a  brief  clacking  in  the 
Sangamon  ;  or  perhaps  he  would  be  scoffed,  kicked 
and  cuffed  by  a  number  of  persons  in  concert,  until 
he  reached  the  confines  of  the  village,  and  then  turned 
adrift  as  being  unfit  company  for  the  people  of  that 
settlement.  If,  however,  the  stranger  consented  to 
engage  in  a  tussle  with  one  of  his  persecutors,  it  was 
usually  arranged  that  there  should  be  'foul  play,'  with 
nameless  impositions  and  insults,  which  would  inevi- 
tably change  the  affair  into  a  fight  ;  und  then  if  the 
subject  of  all  these  practices  proved  to  be  a  man  of 
mettle,  he  would  be  promptly  received  into  their 
society,  and  in  all  probability  would  never  have  better 
friends  on  earth  than  the  roystering  fellows  who  had 
contrived  his  torments." 

These  "  ruffians  "  had  not  "  initiated  "  Abraham 
for  some  reason.  Perhaps  a  wholesome  recollection 
of  his  strength,  courage  and  tact  in  engineering  the 
boat  over  Rutledge's  dam,  or  the  extravagant  state- 
ments of  Offutt  concerning  his  marvellous  achieve- 
ments, had  restrained  them.  At  any  rate  they  did 
not   molest  him,  until  one  day,  when  Bill   Clary  had 


222       PIONEER  HOME   TO    WHITE  HOUSE. 

a  dispute  with  Offutt  in  his  store,  and  both  became 
exasperated.     Bill  exclaimed : 

"  Jack  Armstrong  can  lick  Abe  easy  as  a  boy  knows 
his  father."  Jack  was  the  strongest  man  of  the 
u  gang,"  and  perhaps  the  most  ignorant. 

"  You  don't  know  what  you  are  talking  about,  Bill," 
retorted  Offutt ;  "  he  could  duck  the  whole  Clary 
Grove  crew  in  the  Sangamon,  before  Jack  Armstrong 
could  get  up  after  he'd  laid  him  on  his  back." 

"  I'll  bet  ten  dollars  on  that,"  shouted  Bill.  "  The 
fact  is,  Abe  wouldn't  dare  to  risk  a  fight  with  Jack." 

"The  whole  of  you  are  blowers  and  cowards,"  re- 
sponded Offutt,  angrily.  "  There's  more  in  Abe's 
little  finger  than  the  whole  of  you  have  got  in  your 
soul  and  body." 

The  knowledge  of  this  hot  interview  spread  like 
wildfire,  and  the  "  Clary  Grove  boys  "  would  not  con. 
sent  to  peace  any  longer.  "  Jack  Armstrong  must 
wrestle  with  Abe,"  and  settle  the  vital  question  with 
"  ruffians."  They  proposed  all  sorts  of  bets,  staking 
money,  whiskey  and  what  not  upon  the  issue. 

Soon  the  proposition  from  the  "  Clary  Grove  Boys  " 
came  direct  to  Abraham,  and  he  answered  : 

"I  must  decline  such  a  trial  with  Jack/' 

"Then  you  are  not  the  man  to  live  in  New  Salem 
fonger,"  shouted  one. 

"  Perhaps  not,"  replied  Abraham,  with  a  quizzical 
look,  as  if  he  meant  to  say,  "that  is  none  of  your 
business." 

"  We'll  duck  you  in  the  Sangamon,"  exclaimed  an- 
other. 

"  Whether  you  do  or  not,"  answered  Abe,  "  I  tell 


STILL  A    CLERK  22% 

you  that  I  never  tussle  and  scuffle,  and  I  will  not,  I 
don't  like  this  woolling  and  pulling." 

"Dcn't,  hey!"  shouted  one  of  the  number,  at  the 
same  time  pulling  Abe's  nose. 

"  Be  careful;  not  too  familiar,"  said  Abraham  in  a 
warning  manner. 

Thus  the  provocations  were  multiplied  until  Abra- 
ham, seeing  that  the  only  way  of  settling  the  difficulty 
was  to  lay  Jack  upon  his  back,  consented  to  wrestling. 
They  took  side  holds,  and  presently  Abraham,  having 
the  advantage  by  reason  of  his  long  legs  and  arms, 
lifted  Jack  completely  from  the  ground,  and,  swinging 
him  about,  thought  to  lay  him  on  his  back,  but  Jack 
came  down  upon  his  feet  squarely  and  firmly. 

"Now,  Jack,"  said  Abraham,  "let's  quit;  I  can't 
throw  you,  and  you  can't  throw  me." 

"No,  Jack,  don't  give  up,"  shouted  Bill  Clary; 
"Abe's  begging  for  quarter  now."  Bill  supposed 
that  Abraham's  courage  was  failing  him,  or  else  it  was 
the  plan  of  the  gang  to  play  foul.  Be  this  as  it  may, 
Jack  at  once  broke  his  hold  and  adopted  the  unfair 
method  of  "legging,"  whereupon  Abraham  seized  him 
by  the  throat,  and  lifting  him  from  the  ground,  and 
holding  him  at  arm's  length,  shook  him  like  a  child. 
The  astonished  ruffians  saw  that  their  champion  was 
worsted,  and  they  cried  :  — 

"Fight,  Jack,  fight!" 

No  doubt  all  of  them  would  have  attacked  Abraham 
had  Jack  led  off.  But  the  latter  saw  little  encourage- 
ment in  continuing  a  contest  with  a  man  who  could 
hold  him  out  at  arm's  length  by  the  throat ;  and  the 
moment  Abraham  relinquished  his  hold,  Jack  grasped 


224       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

his  hand  in  friendship,  and  declared  that  "  Abe  was  thi 
the  best  feller  that  ever  broke  into  their  settlement. " 
Their  friendship  became  almost  like  that  of  David  and 
Jonathan  ;  and  from  that  moment  the  sway  of  the 
u  Clary  Grove  Boys  "  was  broken  in  New  Salem.  Abra- 
ham did  not  hesitate  to  denounce  their  acts  publicly ; 
and  others  soon  joined  him  in  open  hostility  to  such 
ruffianism.  The  result  was,  that  the  gang  gradually 
faded  out,  and  quite  a  number  of  them  became  respect- 
able citizens.  Abraham's  great  strength  and  kindness 
of  heart  did  more  to  reform  the  scoundrels  than  a 
missionary  from  New  England  could  have  done. 

Everybody  now  became  as  enthusiastic  over  Abra 
ham  as  Offutt  was. 

"I  told  you  so,"  said  the  latter.  "I've  seen  some- 
thing of  the  world,  and,  I  tell  you,  his  like  I  never  saw." 

There  was  no  one  to  dispute  Offutt  now.  There 
was  an  end  to  all  riotous  proceedings ;  for  Abraham 
declared  that  such  ruffianly  conduct  should  be  stopped, 
and  some  of  the  citizens  were  bold  enough  to  back 
him.  Even  Jack  Armstrong  promised  him  assistance. 
Abraham's  influence  became  regnant  in  New  Salem 
He  was  even  appealed  to  by  neighbors  to  settle  diffi 
culties,  so  that  he  wore  the  honors  of  " peacemaker" 
in  Illinois  as  he  did  in  Indiana. 

It  was  in  New  Salem  that  Abraham  won  the  soubri 
quet  "  Honest  Abe,"  which  he  carried  through  life. 
The  public  confidence  in  his  integrity  and  fairminded- 
ness  was  such  that  he  was  usually  chosen  for  umpire 
in  all  games  and  trials  where  two  sides  enlisted.  And 
finally,  he  became  in  so  great  demand  in  this  line,  that 
both  sides,  in  those  friendly  contests,  made  him  judge. 


STILL  A    CLERK.  22$ 

An  incident  illustrates  how  strong  a  friend  Jack 
Armstrong  became  to  Abraham,  A  stranger  came 
into  town,  and  he  proved  to  be  a  kind  of  bully,  and  got 
into  a  difficulty  with  Jack. 

"  You  are  a  coward  and  a  liar,"  said  Jack. 

"  You'll  find  out  whether  I  am  or  not/'  exclaimed 
the  stranger. 

"  You're  a  coward  and  a  liar,  I  say,"  shouted  Jack, 
more  loudly  and  defiantly,  while  the  stranger  backed 
towards  a  wood-pile  as  Jack  advanced. 

Before  Jack  perceived  the  purpose  of  the  stranger, 
the  latter  seized  a  stick  of  wood,  and  struck  him  such 
a  blow  as  to  bring  him  to  the  ground.  Jack  recovered 
himself  in  a  moment,  and  was  about  to  leap  upon  his 
antagonist,  when  Abraham,  who  was  near,  interfered, 
saying,  — 

"  I  wouldn't,  Jack ;  it  won't  do  you  any  good." 

"  I'll  thrash  the  rascal,"  retorted  Jack  with  wrath. 

"  No,  Jack ;  we've  done  with  that  kind  of  business 
in  New  Salem,  you  know,"  Abraham  continued. 

"  But  he  insulted  me." 

"  And  what  did  you  say  to  him  ? "  inquired  Abraham. 
The  question  mollified  Jack's  wrath  somewhat,  for  he 
began  to  get  his  eyes  open. 

"  I  called  him  a  coward  and  a  liar,"  replied  Jack. 

"  Well,  suppose  you  were  a  stranger,  in  a  strange 
place,  and  a  man  should  call  you  a  coward  and  a  liar, 
what  would  you  do  ?  " 

"Thrash  him  terribly,"  answered  Jack. 

"  Then  this  man  has  done  no  more  to  you  than  you 
Would  have  done  to  him,"  suggested  Abraham. 

*  That's  so,"  responded  Jack,  as  if  he  saw  the  point 


226       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

clearly.  "It's  all  right,  Abe."  And  turning  to  the 
stranger,  he  added,  "Give  us  your  hand  ;"  and  suiting 
the  action  to  his  words,  he  took  the  hand  of  the 
stranger,  and  declared  himself  a  friend,  supplementing 
his  pledge  of  friendship  with  an  invitation  to  "  take  a 
drink,"  according  to  the  custom  of  the  "Clary  Grove 
Boys." 

Offutt  came  into  the  store  one  afternoon  perplexed 
as  to  the  disposition  of  a  large  drove  of  hogs  he  had 
purchased.  He  had  no  pen  large  enough  to  contain 
them. 

"Build  one,"  said  Abraham  promptly. 

"Too  much  work;  take  too  long,"  replied  Offutt. 

"  It's  more  work  to  be  without  a  pen  when  you  need 
a  larger  one,"  was  Abraham's  suggestive  answer. 

"  Can't  get  anybody  to  build  it,"  continued  Offutt. 

"  I  can  build  it  myself,"  said  Abraham. 

"  What  can't  you  do  ?  "  answered  Offutt. 

"  There  are  a  great  many  things  I  can't  do ;  but  I 
can  build  a  pig-pen,"  Abraham  replied  with  a  smile. 

"  Well,  go  at  it,  then,  and  I'll  help  William  about 
the  store  and  look  after  the  mill,"  was  Offutt's  quick 
decision. 

Abraham  went  into  the  woods  and  cut  down  the 
trees,  and  split  rails  enough  to  make  a  pen  sufficiently 
large  to  hold  a  thousand  hogs. 

During  the  time  that  Abraham  served  Offutt,  he 
attended  a  debating  club.     Dr.  Holland  says  :  — 

"  During  this  year  he  was  also  much  engaged  with 
debating  clubs,  often  walking  six  or  seven  miles  to 
attend  them.  One  of  these  clubs  held  its  meetings 
at  an  old  store-house  in  New  Salem.     He  used  to  call 


STILL  A    CLERK.  *2J 

these  exercises  €  practising  polemics/  As  these  clubs 
were  composed  principally  of  men  of  no  education 
whatever,  some  of  their  'polemics'  are  remembered 
as  the  most  laughable  of  farces.  His  favorite  news- 
paper, at  this  time,  was  the  Louisville  Journal,  a  paper 
which  he  received  regularly  by  mail,  and  paid  for  dur- 
ing a  number  of  years  when  he  had  not  money  enough 
to  dress  decently.  He  liked  its  politics,  and  was  par- 
ticularly delighted  with  its  wit  and  humor,  of  which 
he  had  the  keenest  appreciatioa  When  out  of  the 
store  he  was  always  busy  in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge. 
One  gentleman,  who  met  him  during  this  period,  says 
that  the  first  time  he  saw  him  he  was  lying  on  a 
trundle-bed,  covered  with  books  and  papers,  and  rock- 
ing a  cradle  with  his  foot.  Of  the  amount  of  uncov 
ered  space  between  the  extremities  of  his  trousers  and 
the  top  of  his  socks  which  this  informant  observed, 
there  shall  be  no  mention.  The  whole  scene,  how- 
ever, was  entirely  characteristic  —  Lincoln  reading  and 
studying,  and  at  the  same  time  helping  his  landlady 
by  quieting  her  child.,, 

The  question  whether  the  Sangamon  river  was 
navigable  or  not  had  been  under  discussion  several 
years,  and  reached  the  crisis  while  Abraham  was  in 
the  employ  of  Offutt,  or  just  after  he  closed  his  labors 
for  him. 

"The  'Talisman*  is  chartered  for  the  experiment," 
said  a  citizen  of  New  Salem  to  Abraham;  "and  you 
ought  to  be  her  captain.' ' 

"  It  will  take  a  man  of  more  experience  than  I  have 
had  to  run  her  up  the  river/'  was  Abraham's  modest 
answer. 


228        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"Well,  there's  nobody  here  that  understands  the 
business  better  than  you  do,"  continued  the  citizen. 
;i  Will  you  undertake  if  you  are  wanted  ?" 

"I'll  try,  and  do  the  best  I  can,"  was  Abraham's 
characteristic  reply.  "  I  have  tried  this  river  consid 
erably  with  a  flat-boat." 

"  That  is  what  I  thought,  and  for  that  reason  you 
ought  to  pilot  the  '  Talisman '  ;  and  I  think  that  is  the 
general  opinion." 

"  I  am  willing  to  undertake  it  if  it  is  thought  best," 
Abraham  added. 

The  result  was  that  he  was  sent,  with  others,  to 
meet  the  steamer  at  Beardstown,  and  pilot  her  up. 
There  was  great  excitement  over  the  experiment,  and 
the  inhabitants  came  from  far  and  near  to  witness  the 
trial  from  the  banks  of  the  river.  Abraham  took  his 
place  at  the  helm,  and  piloted  her  with  comparative 
*ase  and  safety  as  far  as  the  New  Salem  dam,  the 
people  gathered  upon  the  banks  of  the  river  frequently 
cheering  at  the  top  of  their  voices.  Here  it  was  neces- 
sary to  remove  a  part  of  the  dam  to  let  the  steamer 
through.  She  ran  up  to  Bogue's  mill,  when  the 
rapidly  falling  water  admonished  the  successful  cap* 
tain  that  she  must  be  turned  down  stream  or  be  left 
there  for  the  season.  No  time  was  lost  in  beginning 
the  return  trip,  which  was  accomplished  at  the  slow  rate 
of  three  or  four  miles  a  day,  "  on  account  of  the  high 
wind  from  the  prairie."  J.  R.  Herndon  was  sent  for, 
and  he  says :  "  I  was  sent  for.  being  an  old  boatman, 
and  I  met  her  some  twelve  or  thirteen  miles  above 
New  Salem.  .  .  .  We  got  to  Salem  the  second  day 
after  I  went  on  board.     When  we  struck  the  dam  she 


STILL  A   CLERK.  229 


hung.  We  then  backed  off,  and  threw  the  anchor 
over  the  dam,  and  tore  away  part  of  the  dam ; 
then,  raising  steam,  ran  her  over  the  first  trial 
As  soon  as  she  was  over,  the  company  that  char- 
tered her  was  done  with  her.  I  think  the  captain 
gave  Lincoln  forty  dollars  to  run  her  down  to  Beards- 
town.  I  am  sure  I  got  forty  dollars  to  continue  on 
her  until  we  landed  at  Beardstown.  We  that  went 
with  her  walked  back  to  New  Salem." 

While  Abraham  was  in  the  employ  of  Offutt,  the 
latter  made  some  unprofitable  ventures,  by  reason  of 
which  he  became  pecuniarily  embarrassed.  His  mill 
enterprise  did  not  prove  as  successful  as  he  anticipated, 
and  other  speculations  left  him  considerably  out  ot 
pocket.  Fortune  ceased  to  smile  upon  any  of  his 
enterprises,  and  his  difficulties  multiplied  from  week 
to  week,  until  he  failed,  closed  his  store,  shut  down  his 
mill,  and  left  Abraham  without  employment.  It  was, 
however,  a  period  of  very  great  advancement  to 
Abraham.  He  had  acquired  much  knowledge  of  mer- 
cantile business,  had  become  familiar  with  grammar, 
had  read  many  books,  made  many  friends,  and  im- 
proved himself  generally.  Dr.  Holland  says,  that, 
when  he  terminated  his  labors  for  Offutt,  "  every  one 
trusted  him.  He  was  judge,  arbitrator,  referee, 
umpire,  authority  in  all  disputes,  games  and  matches 
of  man-flesh  and  horse-flesh  ;  a  pacificator  in  all  quar- 
rels ;  everybody's  friend  ;  the  best-natured,  the  most 
sensible,  the  best-informed,  the  most  modest  and  un- 
assuming, the  kindest,  gentlest,  roughest,  strongest, 
best  young  fellow  in  all  New  Salem  and  the  region 
round  about/ ' 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

ON    THE    WAR-PATH. 

|HE   Black   Hawk   War  was   causing  great 
excitement   in    Illinois  and  other  Western 
states  when  Abraham  closed  his  labors  with 
Offutt.     Not  long  afterward,  the  Governor 
of  Illinois  called  for  four  regiments  of  volunteers. 

"  I  shall  enlist,"  said  Abraham  to  his  intimate  friend 
and  companion,  William  Green,  as  soon  as  the  news 
reached  New  Salem. 

"I  shall  if  you  do,"  responded  William. 

"Well,  I  shall  do  it,  honest.  Nothing  else  on  hand 
now.  Besides,  Black  Hawk  is  one  of  the  most  treacher- 
ous Indians  on  the  footstool,  and  he  ought  to  be  shot. 
It  is  not  more  than  a  year  ago,  and  hardly  that,  that  he 
entered  into  a  treaty ;  and  he  was  to  keep  his  people 
on  the  other  side  of  the  Mississippi,  and  now  he  has 
crossed  to  make  war  on  the  whites." 

"Real  Indian,  that  is,"  continued  William;  "the 
o^ly  way  to  deal  with  an  Indian  is  to  shoot  him." 

"  I  don't  know  about  that ;  it's  the  only  way  to  treat 
Black  Hawk,  though, — a  cunning,  artful  warrior,  who 
is  in  his  element  when  he  can  massacre  the  whites/ 
added  Abraham. 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  23 1 

"They  expect  to  make  short  work  of  it,  or  the 
governor  would  have  called  for  volunteers  for  more 
than  thirty  days,"  suggested  William. 

"They  may  call  for  them  again  after  the  expiration 
of  thirty  days,  and  the  same  volunteers  may  re-enlist. 
I  shall  enlist  for  the  war,  whether  it  is  thirty  days  or 
thirty  months."  Abraham  meant  just  what  he  said,  as 
the  sequel  will  show. 

"Clary  Grove  Boys"  were  now  the  fast  friends  of 
Abraham,  and  all  were  eager  to  enlist  with  him.  Other 
young  men,  and  older  men,  also,  were  ready  for  the  war. 
In  consequence  of  the  general  interest  awakened,  Abra- 
ham said:  — 

"We  can  raise  a  company  in  New  Salem." 

"True  as  you  live,"  answered  Herndon. 

"  We  must  be  about  it  in  a  hurry  if  we  are  going  to 
do  it,"  remarked  Green. 

The  whole  town  became  fired  with  military  ardor,  in 
consequence  of  Abraham's  leadership,  and  the  result 
was  that  a  recruiting  office  was  opened  in  New  Salem. 
Within  a  few  days  the  company  was  full,  Abraham 
being  the  first  to  enlist ;  and  the  choice  of  officers 
became  the  exciting  topic.  However,  the  officers  were 
not  elected  at  New  Salem  ;  but  the  volunteers  marched 
to  Bushville,  in  Schuyler  County,  where  the  election 
took  place. 

There  were  only  two  candidates  for  captain,  Abra- 
ham and  Fitzpatrick,  the  owner  of  the  saw-mill  at 
Spring  Creek.  He  sawed  the  lumber  for  Abraham 
when  he  built  the  boat  for  Offutt,  and  treated  his 
customer  rudely.  Fitzpatrick  was  a  popular  man,  but 
there  was  a  small  show  for  him  in  a  race  with  Abraham. 


232        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

The  method  of  electing  captain  was  peculiar  ;  per- 
haps the  best  method  for  that  place,  under  the  circum- 
stances. The  two  candidates  were  required  to  take 
their  positions  opposite  each  other,  at  a  suitable  dis 
tance ;  and,  at  a  given  signal,  each  volunteer  went 
to  the  one  whom  he  desired  for  his  captain.  Three- 
fourths  of  the  whole  number  at  once  took  their  stand 
with  Abraham ;  and,  when  those  who  first  went  to 
Fitzpatrick  saw  the  overwhelming  majority  for  Abra- 
ham, one  by  one  they  left  the  former  and  joined  the 
latter,  until  but  one  or  two  stood  with  Fitzpatrick. 

"I  felt  bad  for  Fitzpatrick,"  said  Green;  "he  was 
the  most  lonesome-looking  fellow  I  ever  saw." 

"  He  might  have  known  that  we  shouldn't  vote  for 
him  when  Abe  is  about,"  remarked  Herndon.  "  He 
was  too  anxious  to  serve  his  country." 

These,  and  kindred  remarks,  were  bandied  aboir* 
after  the  company  had  indulged  in  vociferous  cheering, 
that  Black  Hawk  might  have  heard  if  he  had  been 
within  a  reasonable  distance. 

"A  speech  from  the  captain,"  was  the  imperative 
call  from  the  company  ;  and  Abraham  promptly  accom- 
modated them  to  one  of  his  best  efforts,  in  which  he 
thanked  them  for  the  honor  conferred,  maintained  that 
their  choice  might  have  fallen  upon  one  much  better 
qualified  for  the  position  than  himself,  and  promised 
that  he  would  do  the  best  he  could  to  prove  himself 
worthy  of  their  confidence. 

"Captain  Lincoln!"  exclaimed  William  Greene, 
addressing  Abraham  facetiously,  and  tipping  his  hat ; 
and,  henceforth,  "Captain  Lincoln"  was  alone  the 
soubriquet  by  which  he  was  known. 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  233 

%  1  — ■ ■ 

One  incident  occurred  before  the  organization  of 
this  company,  which  should  be  rehearsed.  It  illus- 
trates his  temperance  principles,  at  the  same  time 
that  it  shows  his  marvellous  strength.  Green  said 
to  a  stranger,  who  happened  to  be  in  New  Sa- 
lem,-— 

"Abe  Lincoln  is  the  strongest  man  in  Illinois.,, 

"I  deny  it,"  answered  the  stranger,  immediately 
naming  a  stronger  party. 

"  How  much  can  he  lift,"  asked  Green. 

"  He'll  lift  a  barrel  of  flour  as  easily  as  I  can  a  peck 
of  potatoes/' 

"  Abe  can  lift  two  barrels  if  he  could  get  hold  of 
them.,, 

"  Ha  !  ha  !  ha  !  "  laughed  the  man.  "  You  can  tell 
a  greater  story  than  I  can." 

"Great  story  or  not,  I  will  bet  that  Abe  will  lift 
a  barrel  of  whiskey,  and  drink  out  of  the  bunghole." 

"Worse  yet,"  replied  the  man.  "I'll  bet  he  can't 
do  any  such  thing." 

"What  will  you  bet?" 

"I'll  bet  a  good  hat;  and  we'll  have  him  try  right 
off,  if  he  will." 

"Agreed,"  said  Green.  The  truth  was  he  had 
seen  Abraham  do  this  very  thing,  minus  the  drinking 
part,  so  that  he  knew  he  should  win. 

Without  delay  they  sought  Abraham,  and  pro- 
ceeded  to  the  store,  where  the  whiskey  was  found. 

"  I  don't  think  much  of  the  betting  part,"  said 
Abraham,  "but  I  guess  I'll  help  William  out  of  the 
scrape,  though  he  won't  have  much  chance  to  wear 
the  hat  yet  awhile,  if  he  is  going  to  war  with  me." 


234       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Well,  if  you  can  do  what  he  says  you  can,  I  want 
to  see  it,"  said  the  man. 

"  You  shall  have  the  privilege,' '  answered  Abra- 
ham. 

At  once  he  proceeded  to  perform  the  feat,  and 
accomplished  it  with  seeming  ease.  The  barrel  was 
raised,  and  a  quantity  of  liquor  taken  from  the  bung- 
he  le. 

"  There  it  is ! "  exclaimed  Green.  "  But  that  is  the 
LSt  dram  I  ever  saw  you  drink  in  my  life,  Abe,"  he 
idded,  turning  to  Abraham. 

The  words  had  scarcely  escaped  his  lips,  before 
Abraham  set  down  the  barrel,  and  spirted  the  whis- 
key that  was  in  his  mouth  upon  the  floor,  at  the 
same  time  replying,  "  And  I  haven't  drank  that,  you 
see." 

Green  burst  into  a  hearty  laugh  at  this  turn  of  the 
affair,  and  added,  "You  are  bound  to  let  whiskey 
alone,  Abe." 

And  this  same  Green  writes  to  us  :  "  That  was  the 
only  drink  of  intoxicating  liquor  I  ever  saw  him  take, 
ar  1  that  he  spirted  on  the  floor." 

The  stranger  was  satisfied,  as  well  as  astonished. 
E  e  had  never  seen  the  like  before,  and  he  doubted 
wnether  he  ever  should  again.  He  did  not  know  that 
the  whole  life-discipline  through  which  Abraham 
had  passed  was  suited  to  develop  muscular  strength. 
Probably  he  did  not  care,  since  there  was  the  actual 
deed. 

We  are  interested  in  it  mostly  for  the  determina- 
tion it  showed  to  reject  whiskey.  The  act  was  in 
keeping  with  all  his  previous  temperance  habits. 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  235 

On  the  evening  after  this  affair,  Abraham  was 
alone  with  his  friend  William  Green,  who  won  the 
aforesaid  hat,  and  he  said  to  him,  "  William,  are  you 
in  the  habit  of  betting  ?  " 

"No;  I  never  bet  before  in  my  life,  never." 

"  Well,  I  never  would  again,  if  I  were  you.  It  is 
what  unprincipled  men  will  do,  and  I  would  set  my 
face  against  it." 

"  I  didn't  see  anything  very  bad  in  that  bet,"  said 
William. 

"All  bets  are  alike,"  answered  Abraham,  "though 
you  may  not  have  any  bad  motives  in  doing  it." 

"  I  only  wanted  to  convince  the  man  that  you  could 
lift  the  barrel." 

"  I  know  it ;  but  I  want  you  should  promise  me  that 
you  will  never  bet  again.  It  is  a  species  of  gambling, 
and  nothing  is  meaner  than  that." 

"  I  don't  suppose  I  shall  ever  do  it  again." 

"  I  want  you  should  promise  me  that  you  won't," 
continued  Abraham,  with  increased  emphasis.  "It 
will  please  your  mother  to  know  of  so  good  a  reso- 
lution." 

"  I  will  promise  you,  Abe,"  answered  William, 
grasping  his  hand,  while  tears  glistened  in  his  eyes. 
And  there  was  true  seriousness  in  this  transaction, 
inore  than  might  appear  to  the  reader  at  first  view. 
The  one  who  thus  pledged  himself  to  Abraham  writes 
to  us  now,  in  his  riper  years :  "  On  that  night,  when 
alone,  I  wept  over  his  lecture  to  me,  and  I  have  so  far 
kept  that  solemn  pledge." 

The  New  Salem  company  went  into  camp  at 
Beardstown,    from    whence,    in    a    few     days,    they 


236       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

marched  to  the  expected  scene  of  conflict.  When 
the  thirty  days  of  their  enlistment  had  expired,  how- 
ever, they  had  not  seen  the  enemy.  They  were  dis- 
banded at  Ottawa,  and  most  of  the  volunteers 
returned.  But  a  new  levy  being  called  for,  Abraham 
re-enlisted  as  a  private.  Another  thirty  days  ex- 
pired, and  the  war  was  not  over.  His  regiment  was 
disbanded,  and  again,  the  third  time,  he  volunteered. 
He  was  determined  to  serve  his  country  as  long  as  the 
war  lasted.  Before  the  third  term  of  his  enlistment 
had  expired,  the  battle  of  Bad  Axe  was  fought,  which 
put  an  end  to  the  war. 

He  returned  home.  "  Having  lost  his  horse,  near 
where  the  town  of  Janesville,  Wisconsin,  now  stands, 
he  went  down  Rock  River  to  Dixon  in  a  canoe. 
Thence  he  crossed  the  country  on  foot  to  Peoria, 
where  he  again  took  a  canoe  to  a  point  on  the  Illinois 
River,  within  forty  miles  of  home.  The  latter  dis- 
tance he  accomplished  on  foot." 

Several  incidents  transpired  during  his  connection 
with  the  army,  which  are  so  expressive  of  certain 
elements  of  his  character,  that  we  record  them  here 
One  day  an  old  Indian  found  his  way  into  camp,  pro 
fessing  to  be  friendly  to  the  whites,  and  casting  him- 
self upon  the  mercy  of  Lincoln's  soldiers. 

"  We  came  to  fight  Indians,"  shouted  one  of  the 
"boys,"  "and  we'll  give  you  cold  lead  instead  of 
mercy." 

"  Shoot  him  !  shoot  him  !  "  cried  several  voices. 

"A  spy  !  a  spy  !  "  shouted  others. 

The  demonstration  terrified  the  Indian,  and,  in  his 
distress,  he  flung  down  a  crumpled  paper  that  he  had 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  2tf 

been  holding  in  his  hand,  and  begged  them  to  read  it. 
Captain  Lincoln  took  it  up,  and  found  that  it  was  a 
certificate  of  character  and  safe-conduct  from  General 
Cass,  endorsing  the  Indian  as  a  faithful  man  who  had 
done  good  for  him. 

"  A  forged  document  ! "  was  the  cry  raised  at  once. 

"The  old  savage  can't  run  it  on  us  like  that," 
cried  Bill  Clary,  raising  his  gun  in  a  threatening 
manner. 

"  Kill  him  !  show  him  no  quarter  ! "  cried  another  of 
the  "Clary  Grove  Boys,"  several  of  whom  had  made 
considerable  trouble  for  their  captain  by  their  unruly 
conduct. 

The  "  boys "  were  bound  to  kill  the  red-skin,  and 
were  actually  rushing  upon  him  when  Captain  Lincoln 
sprang  before  him,  confronting  the  assailants,  and 
commanding  them  to  desist. 

"  You  shall  not  shoot  the  Indian,"  he  cried.  "  Gen- 
eral Cass's  order  must  be  respected." 

"We  will  shoot  him,"  yelled  a  Clary  Grove  ruffian. 

"  Not  unless  you  shoot  me,"  fiercely  cried  Captain 
Lincoln,  towering  up  to  his  full  height,  and  covering 
the  Indian  by  his  bodily  presence. 

His  determined  manner,  resolute  and  invincible 
spirit,  and  terrible  earnestness,  evinced  by  every  motion 
of  his  body,  cowed  the  "boys,"  so  that  they  fell  back 
sullenly,  and  desisted  from  firing  the  fatal  shot. 
Some  of  them,  however,  still  muttered  vengeance  in  a 
low  tone,  and  finally,  one,  more  defiant  than  the  rest, 
exclaimed : 

"  This  is  cowardly  on  your  part,  Lincoln." 

Aroused  to  the  highest  pitch  of  determination  by  this 


238       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Lu^olent  and  unreasonable  charge,  Captain  Lincoln 
shouted : 

"  If  any  of  you  think  I  am  a  coward,  let  him  test  it 
here  and  now." 

"  You  are  larger  and  heavier  than  we  are,  Lincoln/' 
replied  one. 

"  You  can  guard  against  this  ;  choose  your  own 
weapons,"  Captain  Lincoln  retorted,  the  unconquerable 
spirit  within  him  manifesting  itself  through  every 
lineament  of  his  face  and  every  gesture.  "He  never 
appeared  so  powerful  and  fearless  before,"  says  one 
who  was  present.  Even  the  most  rebellious  of  the 
"Clary  Grove  Boys"  dared  not  lift  his  finger  against 
the  Indian  ;  and  never  more  did  they  associate  the 
term  "  coward  "  with  Lincoln's  name. 

In  this  affair  Captain  Lincoln's  life  was  in  as  great 
peril  as  that  of  the  Indian.  One  of  his  biographers 
says  :  "  He  often  declared  that  his  life  and  character 
were  both  at  stake,  and  would  probably  have  been 
lost,  had  he  not  at  that  supremely  critical  moment  for- 
gotten the  officer  and  asserted  the  man.  To  have 
ordered  the  offenders  under  arrest  would  have  created 
a  formidable  mutiny ;  to  have  tried  and  punished  them 
would  have  been  impossible.  They  could  scarcely  be 
called  soldiers  ;  they  were  merely  armed  citizens,  with 
a  nominal  military  organization.  They  were  but  re- 
cently enlisted,  and  their  term  of  service  was  about  to 
expire.  Had  he  preferred  charges  against  them,  and 
offered  to  submit  their  differences  to  a  court  of  any 
sort,  it  would  have  been  regarded  as  an  act  of  personal 
pusillanimity,  and  his  efficiency  would  have  been  gone 
forever." 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  239 

Wrestling,  jumping,  and  lifting  was  a  pastime  in 
camp,  and  Captain  Lincoln  excelled  every  man  in  the 
regiment  in  these  feats.  His  company  declared  that 
there  was  not  a  man  in  the  whole  army  who  was  his 
equal  as  a  wrestler;  and  they  boastfully  pitted  him 
against  the  "  whole  field/'  This  challenge  brought 
out  a  man  from  another  regiment,  by  the  name  of 
Thompson,  who  offered  to  wrestle  with  Lincoln.  The 
latter's  company  at  once  staked  money,  weapons,  and 
outfit,  believing  that  their  captain  would  lay  the 
"  great  Western  wrestler,"  as  he  was  called,  on  his 
back. 

Captain  Lincoln  had  tussled  with  Thompson  but 
a  few  minutes  when  he  remarked  to  his  friends,  — 

"  This  is  the  most  powerful  man  I  ever  had  hold  of. 
He  will  throw  me,  and  you  will  lose." 

The  company  urged  him  on,  believing  he  was  more 
than  a  match  for  Thompson  ;  but  they  were  sadly  dis- 
appointed when  the  latter  threw  their  champion  flat 
on  his  back.  As,  according  to  the  custom,  it  required 
two  out  of  three  falls  to  settle  the  contest,  they  were 
soon  struggling  again,  when  both  of  them  came  to 
the  ground,  Thompson  on  top.  In  their  great  disap- 
pointment, Lincoln's  men  claimed  that  Thompson  was 
thrown  as  really  as  their  captain,  the  second  time,  and 
refused  to  give  up  their  property  staked.  This 
brought  on  a  collision  with  Thompson's  friends,  and 
they  were  about  to  proceed  to  blows,  when  Captain 
Lincoln  magnanimously  stepped  in  and  prevented  fur- 
ther trouble.     Addressing  his  men,  he  said?  — 

"  Boys,   Thompson   actually    threw   me   once   iaif 
broadly  so ;  and  the  second  time  he  threw  me  fairly, 


240       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

though  not  apparently  so."  And  he  counselled  them 
to  be  honest  and  accept  the  inevitable.  This  was  a 
very  remarkable  example  of  magnanimity,  and  served 
to  exalt  Lincoln  still  higher,  if  possible,  in  the  estima- 
tion of  all. 

Another  incident  we  will  give  in  the  language  of 
William  Green  :  "  One  other  word  in  reference  to 
Lincoln's  care  for  the  health  and  welfare  of  his  men, 
and  justice  to  them.  Some  officers  of  the  United 
States  had  claimed  that  the  regular  army  had  a  pref- 
erence in  the  rations  and  pay.  Captain  Lincoln  was 
ordered  to  do  some  act  which  he  deemed  unauthor- 
ized. He,  however,  obeyed,  but  went  to  the  officer 
and  said  to  him,  '  Sir,  you  forget  that  we  are  not 
under  the  rules  and  regulations  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment at  Washington  ;  are  only  volunteers  under  the 
orders  and  regulations  of  Illinois.  Keep  in  your  own 
sphere,  and  there  will  be  no  difficulty ;  but  resistance 
will  hereafter  be  made  to  your  unjust  orders  ;  and, 
further,  my  men  must  be  equal  in  all  particulars,  in 
rations,  arms,  camps,  etc.,  to  the  regular  army/  The 
man  saw  that  Lincoln  was  right,  and  determined  to 
have  justice  done.  Afterwards  we  were  treated 
equally  well,  and  just  as  the  regular  army  was,  in  every 
particular.  This  brave,  just,  and  humane  act  in  behalf 
of  the  volunteers  at  once  attached  officers  and  rank  te 
turn,  as  with  hooks  of  steel." 

Mr.  Irwin  pays  the  following  deserved  tribute  to 
Lincoln  in  the  army  :  "  During  the  campaign  Lincoln 
himself  was  always  ready  for  an  emergency.  He  en. 
dured  hardships  like  a  good  soldier ;  he  never  com. 
plained,  nor  did  he  fear  danger.     When  fighting  was 


ON  THE  WAR-PATH.  241 

expected,  or  danger  apprehended,  Lincoln  was  tne  first 
to  say  'Let's  go/  He  had  the  confidence  of  every 
man  of  his  company,  and  they  obeyed  his  orders  at  a 
word.  His  company  was  mostly  young  men,  and  full 
of  sport." 

The  Black  Hawk  war  was  not  much  of  a  war  after 
all,  and  our  hero  did  not  engage  directly  with  the 
enemy  face  to  face.  Yet  two  officers  in  that  war,  Col- 
onel Zachary  Taylor  and  Captain  Abraham  Lincoln, 
subsequently  became  Presidents  of  the  United  States. 

One  of  the  most  humorous  speeches  Abraham  Lin- 
coln ever  made  in  Congress  had  reference  to  this  war. 
General  Cass  was  the  Democratic  candidate  for  Presi- 
dent, and  certain  congressional  orators  made  capital 
out  of  the  General's  connection  with  the  Black  Hawk 
war. 

Lincoln  rose  in  his  seat,  and  said,  among  other 
things,  "  By  the  way,  Mr.  Speaker,  do  you  know  that  I 
am  a  military  hero  ?  Yes,  sir,  in  the  days  of  the  Black 
Hawk  war,  I  fought,  bled,  and  came  away.  Speak- 
ing of  General  Cass's  career  reminds  me  of  my  own. 
I  was  not  at  Stillman's  defeat,  but  I  was  about  as  near 
it  as  Cass  to  Hull's  surrender  ;  and  like  him  I  saw  the 
place  very  soon  afterward.  It  is  quite  certain  that  I 
did  not  break  my  sword,  for  I  had  none  to  break ;  * 
but  I  bent  my  musket  pretty  badly  on  one  occasion 
.  .  .  Ti  General  Cass  went  in  advance  of  me  in  pick- 
ing whortleberries,  I  guess  I  surpassed  him  in  charges 
upon  the  wild  onions.  If  he  saw  any  live,  fighting 
Indians,  it  was  more  than  I  did,  but  1  had  a  good  many 

*  Lincoln  re-eniisted  as  private,  so  that  be  did  not  carry  a 
sword  after  the  term  of  his  company's  enlistment  expired. 


242       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

bloody  struggles  with  the  mosquitoes  ;  and,  although  1 
never  fainted  from  loss  of  blood,  I  can  truly  say  I  was 
often  very  hungry.  ...  If  I  should  ever  turn 
Democrat,  and  be  taken  up  as  a  candidate  for  the 
Presidency  by  the  Democratic  party,  I  hope  they  will 
not  make  fun  of  me  by  attempting  to  make  me  out  a 
military  hero/' 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

UNSOUGHT    HONORS. 

|N  his  return  from  the  Black  Hawk  wa^ 
Lincoln  took  up  his  abode  in  the  family  of 
J.  R.  Herndon.  The  people  of  New  Salem 
gave  him  a  hearty  welcome,  and  delighted 
to  call  him  "  Captain  Lincoln/'  The  Herndon  family 
were  soon  more  strongly  attached  to  him  than  ever. 
"  He  had  one  of  Herndon's  children  around  with  him 
nearly  all  the  time,"  says  an  eye-witness.  "  He  was 
at  home  wherever  he  went,  and  made  himself  wonder- 
fully agreeable  to  the  people  he  lived  with,  or  hap- 
pened to  be  visiting,"  says  Mr.  Herndon.  That  his 
kind  and  benevolent  disposition  did  not  suffer  by  his 
service  in  the  army  is  quite  evident  from  a  remark  of 
Mr.  Herndon,  "  He  was  kind  to  the  widow  and 
Drphan,  and  chopped  their  wood." 

He  was  casting  about  for  some  employment,  where- 
by to  earn  a  livelihood.  For  some  reason,  to  us 
unknown,  the  blacksmith's  trade  attracted  his  atten- 
tion. 

"What  do  you  think  of  my  learning  the  black- 
smith's trade  ? "  he  said  to  his  friend,  William  Green, 
one  day. 


244       tlONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"A  blacksmith  !"  exclaimed  William  with  much  sur 
prise.  "That  would  be  quite  a  descent  from  Captain 
Linco^  to  smitJiy  Lincoln.     You  are  joking,  Cap'n. 

"Never  was  more  serious  in  my  life,  William.  A 
blacksmith  is  of  more  practical  use  to  the  community 
than  a  captain  in  an  Indian  war." 

"But  less  glory  in  it,"  replied  Green.  "You  don't 
seem  to  understand  that  war  makes  heroes,  and 
heroes  get  into  political  life.  Why,  Abe,  we're  going 
to  send  you  to  the  legislature." 

"None  of  your  bantering,  William,"  Lincoln 
answered,  supposing  that  his  friend  was  joking.  "I'm 
talking  business." 

"  So  am  I.  Haven't  you  heard,  Abe,  that  the  Clay 
men  are  going  to  run  you  for  the  legislature?" 

"No,  nor  you.  Yesterday  I  heard  the  names  of 
John  T.  Stuart,  Colonel  Taylor  and  Peter  Cartwright, 
named  as  Jackson  candidates ;  and  nobody  would  think 
of  running  me  against  such  men." 

"All  that  may  be,  and  there  may  be  a  half-dozen 
other  candidates ;  but  we  are  going  to  run  you 
against  the  ^hole  batch,  unless  you  positively  de- 
cline." 

"You  are  crazy,  William,  and  all  the  rest  of  you 
who  entertain  such  a  thought.  What!  run  me, 
nothing  but  a  strapping  boy,  against  such  men  of 
experience  and  wisdom!  Come,  now,  no  more  of 
your  gammon." 

"Tlwi  you  won't  believe  me?" 

"1  didn't  say  so." 

"Well,  believe  it  or  not,  you  will  be  waited  upon  b) 
older  persons  than  I  am,  to  get  your  consent." 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  24$ 

And,  sure  enough,  he  was  waited  upon  by  several  0$ 
the  most  influential  citizens  of  New  Salem,  within 
twenty-four  hours  thereafter,  to  ask  his  consent  to  run 
as  a  candidate  for  the  legislature. 

"It  will  only  subject  me  to  ridicule,"  he  said 

"Why  so?"  inquired  one  of  the  number. 

"For  the  folly  of  running  against  such  men  as 
Stuart  and  Cartwright/ 

"Not  if  you  beat  them." 

"That  is  impossible.  I  should  not  expect  to  be 
elected,  if  I  should  consent  to  be  a  candidate." 

"I  don't  know  about  that,"  answered  one;  "we 
expect  to  elect  you." 

"But  I  have  lived  in  the  county  only  a  few 
months,  and  am  known  only  in  New  Salem,  while 
the  other  candidates  are  known  in  every  part  of  the 
county.  Besides,  it  is  only  ten  days  before  the 
election,  and  there  is  little  time  to  carry  youi 
measures." 

"Very  true;  but  there  is  a  principle  involved  in 
your  nomination,  and  we  shall  sustain  that,  whethei 
you  art  elected  or  not." 

Here  was  a  point  of  importance.  There  were  no 
distinct  political  parties  then  in  the  State,  as  there 
are  now.  But  there  were  "Jackson  men  and  Clay 
men,"  not  to  mention  others.  Abraham  was  a  "  Clay 
man,"  while  the  majority  vote  of  the  county,  at  the 
previous  presidential  election,  was  cast  for  Jackson. 
In  these  circumstances  there  was  little  prospect  that 
the  young  candidate  would  be  elected. 

Suffice  to  say  that  Abraham  at  last  yielded  very 
reluctantly,   and   became   a   candidate.      He  was  not 


246       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HQUS5* 

elected  ;  but  his  popularity  may  be  learned  from  the 
fact  that  he  stood  next  to  the  successful  candidate, 
and  only  a  few  votes  behind  him.  "  His  own  precinct, 
New  Salem,  gave  him  277  votes  in  a  poll  of  284,"—  all 
but  seven.  No  one  was  more  surprised  than  Abraham 
himself.  Although  he  was  not  elected,  yet  the  result* 
in  the  circumstances,  was  a  signal  triumph. 

Mr.  R.  B.  Rutledge  was  the  citizen  who  really 
secured  Lincoln's  consent  to  be  a  candidate.  He 
had  heard  him  make  a  speech  before  the  "New  Salem 
Literary  Society,"  on  one  occasion,  which  impressed 
him  so  much  that  he  did  not  hesitate  to  say,  "Abe 
will  make  a  great  man."  Of  that  speech  he  says: 
"As  he  rose  to  speak,  his  tall  form  towered  above  the 
little  assembly.  Both  hands  were  thrust  down  deep  in 
the  pockets  of  his  pantaloons.  A  perceptible  smile  at 
once  lit  up  the  faces  of  the  audience,  for  all  anticipated 
the  relation  of  some  humorous  story.  But  he  opened 
up  the  discussion  in  splendid  style,  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  his  friends.  As  he  warmed  with  his  subject, 
his  hands  forsook  his  pockets  and  enforced  his  noble 
thoughts  with  awkward  gestures.  He  pursued  the 
question  with  reason  and  argument  so  pithy  that  all 
were  amazed.''  The  president,  at  his  fireside,  after  the 
meeting,  remarked  to  his  wife,  "There  is  more  in 
Abe's  head  than  wit  and  fun.  He  is  already  a  fine 
speaker,  and  all  that  is  needed  is  culture,  to  enable 
him  to  reach  the  high  place  which  I  believe  is  in  store 
for  him." 

While  Mr.  Rutledge  admitted  to  Abraham  that 
there  was  little  or  no  chance  of  his  election,  he  assured 
him  that  the  canvass  would  bring  his  name  prominently 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  247 

before  the  voters  of  the  county  for  future  use.  His 
arguments  prevailed  with  Lincoln. 

Candidates  for  State  offices  were  obliged  to  take  the 
stump,  and  declare  their  sentiments  and  vindicate 
them.  Abraham  followed  the  custom,  and  made 
several  speeches,  with  the  expressed  condition,  how- 
ever, that  "his  friends  should  not  laugh  at  him."  His 
first  speech  was  made  at  Pappsville,  about  eleven  miles 
west  of  Springfield.     It  was  as  follows:  — 

"Gentlemen  and  fellow-citizens,  I  presume  you  all 
know  who  I  am.  I  am  humble  Abraham  Lincoln.  I 
have  been  solicited  by  many  friends  to  become  a  can- 
didate for  the  Legislature.  My  politics  are  short  and 
sweet :  I  am  in  favor  of  a  national  bank ;  I  am  in 
favor  of  the  internal  improvement  system  and  a  high 
protective  tariff.  These  are  my  sentiments  and  politi- 
cal principles.  If  elected,  I  shall  be  thankful ;  if  not, 
it  will  be  all  the  same." 

The  brevity  of  his  speech  was  the  fruit  of  his 
modesty,  which  did  not  fail  to  captivate  his  hearers. 
He  made  several  other  speeches,  and  issued  an  address 
also,  of  considerable  length  and  real  merit,  to  the  voters 
of  the  county.     In  closing  that  address,  he  said:  — 

"  Considering  the  great  degree  of  modesty  that 
should  always  attend  youth,  it  is  probable  that  I  have 
been  more  presuming  than  becomes  me.  However, 
upon  the  subjects  of  which  I  have  treated,  I  have 
spoken  as  I  have  thought.  .  .  .  Every  man  is  said 
to  have  his  peculiar  ambition.  Whether  it  be  true  or 
not,  I  can  say,  for  one,  that  I  have  no  other  so  great 
as  that  of  being  truly  esteemed  of  my  fellow-men,  by 
rendering  myself  worthy  of  their  esteem." 


248        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

His  opponents  made  fun  of  his  appearance  wherever 
he  spoke ;  and  it  must  be  confessed  that  there  was 
some  occasion  for  it,  judging  from  the  description  of 
his  dress  furnished  by  his  friend,  Mr.  A.  B.  Ellis,  who 
accompanied  him  during  a  part  of  the  campaign.  He 
says :  "  He  wore  a  mixed  jeans  coat,  claw-hammer 
style,  short  in  the  sleeves,  and  bobtail,  —  in  fact,  it 
was  so  short  in  the  tail  he  could  not  sit  on  it, — flax 
and  tow  linen  pantaloons,  and  a  straw  hat.  I  think 
he  wore  a  vest,  but  do  not  remember  how  it  looked. 
He  then  wore  pot-metal  boots." 

Thoughtful,  substantial  citizens  regarded  Abra- 
ham's mode  of  dress  rather  complimentary.  It 
denoted  the  absence  of  pride  and  vanity  to  them 
more  than  an  absence  of  taste.  "  Abe's  no  dandy/' 
remarked  one  of  his  most  enthusiastic  admirers, 
designing  to  pay  him  a  high  compliment. 

When  the  labor  and  excitement  of  the  campaign 
were  over,  Abraham's  pocket  was  empty.  He  was, 
therefore,  under  the  necessity  of  finding  "  something 
to  do."  The  vote  of  New  Salem  convinced  him  that 
he  had  plenty  of  friends  there.  A  citizen  remarked, 
referring  to  his  poverty,  "  Abe  has  nothing  except 
plenty  of  friends."     But  he  must  have  work,  also. 

"  You  must  stay  here,"  said  his  friend  Green,  very 
earnestly. 

"  There  is  no  must  about  it,  if  there's  no  work  for 
me,"  answered  Lincoln. 

"  There'll  be  enough  that  you  can  do,  only  take 
time  for  it  ;  the  world  wasn't  made  in  a  minute." 

"  No ;  I  suppose  it  took  about  six  days,  and  if  I  can 
find  employment  in  that  time,  I  shall  be  satisfied." 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  24g 

"I'll    tell    you   what    to    do,  Abe, — study    law 
you're  just  the  man  for  it." 

"Whew!  I  should  laugh  to  see  myself  trying  to 
make  a  lawyer." 

"  Why  not  be  one,  I  should  like  to  know  ? " 

"  For  the  very  good  reason,  that  I  haven't  brains 
enough." 

"Just  what  I  thought  you  would  say.  You  are 
altogether  too  sparing  of  good  opinions  of  your- 
self. You've  more  brains  than  half  the  lawyers  in 
Illinois." 

"Perhaps  that  isn't  saying  much,"  replied  Abra- 
ham, laughing;  "although  it  is  a  pretty  handsome 
compliment  on  your  part.     Much  obliged." 

"Well,  compliment  or  not,  I  have  heard  a  good 
many  people  say  that  you  ought  to  be  a  lawyer." 

"  And  I  have  heard  one  propose  that  I  be  a  black- 
smith, as  I  told  you ;  and  I  suppose  I  could  swing  a 
sledge-hammer  equal  to  any  of  them." 

"  And  throw  away  your  talents  ?  Any  fool  could 
be  a  blacksmith." 

"  By  no  means.  No  man  can  be  successful  at  any- 
thing unless  he  is  industrious,  and  has  common  sense, 
and  a  good  share  of  perseverance." 

"That's  so,  I  s'pose ;  but  a  blacksmith  is  the  last 
thing  I  would  be  if  I  were  in  your  place.  I  would  like 
to  know  who  ever  suggested  such  an  idea  to  you." 

"  My  father  several  years  ago  ;  and  less  than  five 
years  ago  I  came  within  an  ace  of  putting  his  advice 
into  practice.     I  almost  decided  to  go  at  it  for  life." 

"  Ha !  ha !  ha !  "  laughed  his  friend,  heartily. 
*  Wouldn't  you  cut  a  dash  donning  a  leather  apron 


2 SO       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

and  blowing  the  blacksmith's  bellows,  like  another  Jaclf 
Smuttyface,  as  they  used  to  call  Jake  Tower." 

"An  honest  calling/'  answered  Lincoln;  "and  that 
is  the  main  thing.  A  lawyer  can  look  a  little  more 
spruce  than  a  son  of  Vulcan,  to  be  sure  ;  but  a  black 
smith  can  be  just  as  upright,  if  not  a  little  more  so/' 

"And  what  do  you  mean  by  'a  little  more  so'?" 
asked  Green. 

"  Why,  don't  you  know  that  nearly  everybody  sus- 
pects lawyers  of  trickery, —  doing  anything  for  a  fee, 
blowing  hot  or  cold  for  the  sake  of  a  case,  —  shielding 
the  meanest  culprits  as  readily  as  they  do  the  best 
men  —  and  all  that  sort  of  thing  ?" 

"  Not  quite  so  bad  as  that,  Abe.  I  know  that  law- 
yers are  not  over  particular,  and  that  is  true  of  a  good 
many  folks  who  are  not  lawyers.  If  you  won't  follow 
a  calling  because  there  are  scapegraces  in  it,  you  will 
not  choose  one  right  away." 

"  Perhaps  so  *  but  no  man  has  any  more  right  to 
defend  the  wrong  because  he  is  a  lawyer  than  he  has 
because  he  is  a  blacksmith,  in  my  way  of  thinking." 

"  I  give  it  up,  Abe ;  you've  got  the  case  already,  and 
I  am  more  convinced  than  ever  that  you  ought  to  study 
law." 

"That  is,  if  you  are  judge  and  jury,"  responded 
Lincoln.  "But  I  don't  understand  why  it  is  that 
people  are  determined  I  shall  be  a  lawyer.  As  many 
as  ten  months  ago,  two  or  three  people  gave  me  the 
same  advice,  though  I  thought  they  were  half  in 
joke." 

"Well,  Abe,  perhaps  you'll  get  your  eyes  open,  if 
you  live  long  enough,  to  see  what  you  ought  to  be/' 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  2 5 1 

tr — " ■ 

said  Green,  in  a  strain  of  pleasantry.  "  Not  many 
folks  live  that  have  to  go  to  their  neighbors  to  find  out 
what  they  are.  By  the  time  you  are  seven  feet  high, 
perhaps  you  will  understand." 

"  I  should  think  I  was  pretty  near  that  now,  by  what 
people  say,"  archly  replied  Lincoln. 

"  I  think  you  are  in  a  fair  way  to  be,  if  you  keep 
on." 

"  And  I  shall  be  a  lawyer  by  that  time,  and  not  be. 
fore."     And  here  they  parted. 

Lincoln  had  no  intention  of  being  a  lawyer,  after  all 
that  his  friends  had  suggested.  He  had  no  confidence 
in  his  abilities  for  that  profession.  Indeed,  he  could 
not  see  how  a  young  man  reared  as  he  was  could  ex- 
pect to  enter  upon  such  a  calling.  Yet  he  longed  for 
some  permanent  pursuit, — a  life-vocation.  He  did 
not  like  this  going  from  one  thing  to  another,  and  he 
only  did  it  from  sheer  necessity.  He  believed  that  a 
young  man  should  choose  a  calling,  and  stick  to  it  with 
unwearied  devotion,  if  he  would  make  anything  in  the 
world.  He  wanted  to  do  this  ;  but  what  should  he 
choose?  He  was  perplexed,  troubled,  and  the  more 
so,  because  admiring  friends  advised  him  to  do  what 
he  really  supposed  was  beyond  his  ability.  He  under- 
rated his  talents,  (a  very  good  failing),  and  all  the  time 
thought  that  others  were  overrating  them.  Few 
youth  and  young  men  suffer  in  this  way.  They  are 
more  apt  to  injure  themselves  by  too  exalted  views  of 
their  talents.  Some  of  the  veriest  simpletons  esteem 
themselves  as  the  wisest  and  greatest  men.  Igno- 
rance is  more  likely  to  be  vain  and  proud  than  ripe 
talents   and   learning.      True   knowledge   is    humble. 


2$2        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Great  talents  are  marked  by  humility.  And  so  young 
Lincoln  did  not  stand  so  high  in  his  own  estimation  as 
he  did  in  the  estimation  of  others.  This  was  the 
case  with  Sir  Humphrey  Davy,  Nathaniel  Bowditch, 
Arkwright,  Franklin,  Washington,  and  many  others. 
From  their  youth  they  were  devoid  of  that  vain  self 
confidence  which  many  shallow-brained  people  pos 
sess. 

Instead  of  becoming  a  blacksmith,  however,  Abra 
ham  became  a  merchant.  Mr.  Herndon,  with  whom 
he  boarded,  was  running  a  grocery  with  one  Berry, 
and  he  sold  out  his  interest  to  Lincoln.  Soon  after- 
wards William  Green  bought  out  Radford,  and  imme- 
diately sold  his  stock  of  groceries  to  Lincoln  for  a 
bonus  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  taking  Lin- 
coln's note.  The  name  of  the  firm  was  "  Lincoln  & 
Berry."  Berry  turned  out  to  be  an  intemperate, 
worthless  fellow,  embarrassed  the  business,  cheated 
his  partner,  "  cleared  out,"  and  left  Lincoln  with  all 
the  debts  to  pay.  The  settlement  left  him  penniless, 
without  a  copper  to  pay  his  note  to  Green.  "All 
right,"  said  Green  ;  "  don't  trouble  yourself  about  me. 
When  you  are  able  to  pay  it  you  can  ;  but  if  you  don't, 
it's  all  the  same/ 

Abraham  facetiously  called  it  "the  national  debt/* 
and  declared  that  he  "  should  never  rest  until  it  was 
paid."  And  he  did  not.  Green  removed  to  Tennes- 
see before  the  note  was  paid,  and  scarcely  expected 
that  his  friend  would  ever  be  able  to  redeem  it.  But, 
in  1840,  after  Abraham  had  entered  the  legal  profes- 
sion, the  last  dollar  was  paid. 

Being  through  with  his  store  Abraham  was  again 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  253 

without  employment.  To  add  to  his  disappointment, 
Mr.  Herndon,  with  whom  he  boarded,  removed  from 
town,  obliging  him  to  take  up  his  quarters  at  the 
village  " tavern"  —  a  log  house  with  four  rooms. 
While  waiting  for  some  opening,  he  devoted  himself 
to  mental  improvement  with  more  earnestness  than 
ever.  He  read  Rollin's  Ancient  History.  Gibbon's 
Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  and  similar 
works,  borrowed  of  William  Green,  Minter  Graham, 
Bowlin  Greene,  and  other  parties.  Copies  of  the 
works  of  the  poets,  Burns  and  Shakespeare,  were 
lent  him,  and  Kirkham's  Grammar  was  reviewed, 
also.  He  was  so  won  by  Burns  and  Shakespeare  that 
he  committed  many  of  their  best  productions  to 
memory ;  and  through  life,  these  poets  were  his 
favorite  reading. 

He  wrote  a  careful  synopsis  of  all  the  books  he 
read,  in  order  to  treasure  the  contents  in  his  memory. 
This  habit  was  of  inestimable  value  to  him.  To  it  is 
to  be  traced,  in  part  at  least,  that  clearness  of  ex- 
pression, and  that  fund  of  illustrations  and  facts,  for 
which  the  public  addresses  of  his  ripe  manhood  were 
distinguished. 

Citizens  of  New  Salem  claim,  also,  that  he  began 
to  study  law  at  this  time.  There  is  no  reliable  evi- 
dence, however,  that  he  began  the  study  of  law,  with 
the  expectation  of  ever  entering  the  profession,  at 
that  time.  He  purchased  an  old  copy  of  Blackstone, 
or  some  other  law  book,  at  an  auction  in  Springfield ; 
and  there  is  no  doubt  that  he  studied  it  as  thoroughly 
as  he  did  other  works,  but  with  no  settled  determina- 
tion to  become  a  lawyer. 


254       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Mr.  Henry  says  of  him,  at  this  time,  "  He  used  to 
read  law,  barefooted,  seated  in  the  shade  of  a  tree, 
and  would  grind  around  with  the  shade,  just  oppo- 
site Berry's  grocery  store,  a  few  feet  south  of  the 
door.  He  occasionally  varied  the  attitude  by  lying 
flat  on  his  back,  and  putting  his  feet  up  the  tree." 
Another  says  that  "he  studied,  also,  Natural  Phi- 
losophy, Chemistry,  Astronomy,  etc.  He  had  no 
regular  teacher,  but  perhaps  received  more  assistance 
from  Minter  Graham  than  from  any  other  person." 

Mr.  Ellis,  of  whom  we  have  spoken,  opened  a  store 
in  New  Salem,  and  boarded  at  the  "tavern"  when 
Abraham  did.     He  says  of  him  :  — 

"  He  used  to  assist  me  in  the  store  on  busy  days, 
but  he  always  disliked  to  wrait  on  the  ladies ;  he 
preferred  trading  with  the  men  and  boys,  as  he 
used  to  say.  I  also  remember  that  he  used  to  sleep  in 
the  store,  on  the  counter,  when  they  had  too  much 
company  at  the  tavern. 

"  I  well  remember  how  he  was  dressed  ;  he  wore 
flax  and  tow  linen  pantaloons,  —  I  thought  about  five 
inches  too  short  in  the  legs,  —  and  frequently  he  had 
but  one  suspender,  no  vest  or  coat.  He  wore  a  calico 
shirt,  such  as  he  had  in  the  Black  Hawk  War :  coarse 
brogans,  tan  color ;  blue  yarn  socks,  and  straw  hat,  old 
style,  and  without  a  band. 

"  He  was  very  shy  of  ladies.  On  one  occasion, 
while  we  boarded  at  this  tavern,  there  came  a  family, 
containing  an  old  lady  and  her  son,  and  three  stylish 
daughters,  from  the  State  of  Virginia,  and  stopped 
there  for  two  or  three  weeks  ;  and,  during  their  stay, 
I  do  not  remember  of  Lincoln  ever  eating  at  the  same 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  2$$ 

table  when  they  did.  I  then  thought  it  was  on 
account  of  his  awkward  appearance  and  his  wearing 
apr>aiel." 

Mr.  Lamon  says  of  him,  at  this  time :  "  He  read 
with  avidity  all  the  newspapers  that  came  to  New 
Salem,  —  chiefly  'The  Sangamon  Journal,'  'The 
Missouri  Republican '  and  the  *  Louisville  Journal/ 
The  latter  was  his  favorite ;  its  wit  and  anecdotes, 
were  after  his  own  heart."  He  also  read  "The 
Cincinnati  Gazette"  and  other  papers. 

His  quarters  at  the  "tavern"  subjected  him  to 
many  interruptions.  People  enjoyed  his  conversation 
so  much  that  they  paid  little  regard  to  his  time  for 
study.  In  consequence,  he  was  obliged  to  seek  quiet 
elsewhere.  "Sometimes  he  went  to  James  Short's  on 
the  Sand  Ridge ;  sometimes  to  Minter  Graham's ; 
sometimes  to  Bowlin  Greene's ;  sometimes  to  Jack 
Armstrong's,  and  as  often,  perhaps,  to  Abel's  or  Ben 
Herndon's.  All  of  these  men  served  him  faithfully 
and  signally  at  one  time  and  another,  and  to  all 
of  them  he  was  sincerely  attached." 

Lincoln  found  work  after  a  time.  Unexpectedly  he 
met  John  Calhoun  of  Springfield,  —  the  Calhoun 
who  subsequently  became  notorious  for  his  efforts 
to  enslave  Kansas.  He  became  Fresident  of  the 
Lecompton  Constitutional  Convention,  and  disgraced 
himself,  by  plans  and  tricks,  to  force  slavery  upon 
Kansas.  But  when  he  met  Abraham,  he  was  engaged 
in  a  more  legitimate  and  honorable  business ;  he  was 
'Surveyor  for  Sangamon  County." 

"Try  your  hand  at  surveying,"  said  Calhoun. 

'•I  know  nothing  about  it,"  answered  Abraham. 


256       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Learn,  then." 

"  How  can  I  do  that  ?  " 

"  Easy  enough  if  you  want  to  do  it." 

"  I  do  want  to  do  it.  I  think  I  should  like  the 
business,  if  I  could  qualify  myself  for  it." 

"You  can,  and  in  a  few  weeks,  too.  I  will  lend 
you  Flint  and  Gibson,  the  authors  you  will  want  to 
study,  and  you  can  provide  yourself  with  a  compass 
and  chain,  and  I  will  render  you  any  assistance  I 
can." 

"  You  are  very  kind,  Mr.  Calhoun,  and  I  will  do  the 
best  I  can.  Your  generous  offer  shall  not  come 
to  nothing  for  want  of  my  trying." 

"  You'll  make  a  good  surveyor,  I'm  sure  of  that, 
and  find  plenty  of  business.  And,  what  is  more, 
I  will  depute  to  you  that  portion  of  my  field  con- 
tiguous to  New  Salem." 

"  It  is  more  than  I  could  expect  of  you,"  said 
Lincoln.     "  I  could  not  ask  so  great  a  favor." 

"Take  it  without  asking,"  said  Calhoun,  in  a  jolly 
way.  "  I  have  much  more  than  I  can  do,  and  I  am 
glad  to  give  you  a  portion  of  the  county.  The  great 
influx  of  immigrants,  and  the  consequent  entry  of 
government  lands,  has  given  me  more  than  my  hands 
full." 

"  I  shall  be  glad  to  accept  your  offer  as  soon  as 
I  am  qualified  for  the  business." 

"The  bargain  is  closed,  then,  and  in  six  weeks 
you  can  be  surveying,  if  you're  a  mind  to,"  said 
Calhoun. 

"  I  shall  have  a  mind  to,  if  that  is  all,"  replied 
Lincoln;  "and  with  a  thousand  thanks,  too,  for  your 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  257 

assistance.  It  is  worth  all  the  more  to  me  now. 
because  I  am  thrown  out  of  business." 

"Well,  this  will  make  business  enough  for  you, 
and  it  needs  a  long-legged,  tough,  wiry  fellow  like 
you  to  do  it  well.  This  is  a  great  country  for  sur- 
veyors." 

"  But  shall  I  not  need  to  take  some  lessons  of  you 
in  the  field  when  I  get  through  the  study." 

"  It  will  be  a  capital  idea,  and  you  are  welcome  to 
all  I  can  aid  you  any  time  you  will  come  where  I  am. 
It  will  give  you  a  sweat  to  keep  up  with  me." 

"  Perhaps  so,"  replied  Lincoln,  looking  very  much 
as  if  he  did  not  believe  it.  The  actual  experiment 
proved  that  the  sweat  was  given  to  the  other  party. 

Lincoln  took  Flint  and  Gibson,  and  went  to  Minter 
Graham's,  the  schoolmaster,  out  of  the  village,  and 
spent  six  weeks  in  close  study.  Then  after  a  few 
lessons  in  the  field  with  Calhoun,  he  set  up  as  sur- 
veyor, and  soon  found  plenty  of  business,  and  good 
pay ;  and  his  friend  Green  concluded  that  the  chance  of 
his  making  a  lawyer  was  lost.  "  The  accuracy  of  his 
surveys  was  seldom,  if  ever,  questioned.  Disputes 
regarding  '  corners '  and  '  lines '  were  frequently  sub- 
mitted to  his  arbitration  ;  and  the  decision  was  in- 
variably accepted  as  final." 

When  Abraham  had  leisure  time,  at  this  period  of 
his  life,  he  made  himself  very  useful.  His  sympathy 
for  the  unfortunate,  needy  and  suffering  grew  stronger 
from  year  to  year.  That  tumultuous  element  of 
society  that  prevailed  so  alarmingly  when  he  first  went 
to  New  Salem,  he  denounced  more  and  more.  When 
troubles  arose  between  two  or  more  parties,  he  would 


#y8       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

start  up  and  say.  "  Let's  go  and  stop  it."  Jack  Arm- 
strong had  not  lost  altogether  his  love  of  cruel  sport, 
.such  as  he  indulged  in  when  the  "  Clary  Grove  Boys  " 
were  in  power ;  and  he  bargained  with  a  drunken  fel- 
low, by  the  name  of  Jordan,  to  allow  Jack  to  put  him 
into  a  hogshead  and  roll  him  down  New  Salem  hill,  as 
once  the  "Boys"  did  with  Scanlon  and  Solomon 
Spears.  Jack  was  to  give  the  fellow  a  gallon  of  whis- 
key, expecting  to  get  more  than  the  value  of  several 
gallons  of  the  vile  stuff  in  fun  out  of  the  operation. 
When  Jack  had  the  hogshead  ready  at  the  top  of  the 
hill,  and  his  victim  was  waiting  to  be  headed  up 
within,  Abraham,  who  had  heard  of  the  affair,  came 
rushing  to  the  scene  of  action. 

"Jack!"  he  shouted  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  "stop 
that  game  forthwith.  No  more  such  rascally  tricks  in 
New  Salem." 

Jack  cowered  and  looked  cheap.  "You'll  send 
Jordan  into  eternity  before  he  gets  to  the  foot  of  the 
hill,"  Abraham  continued.  "  You  must  stop  such 
cruelty,  or  you'll  feel  my  long  arms  around  you." 

"Only  a  little  fun,"  answered  Jack. 

"Fun!"  exclaimed  Abraham.  "There'll  be  no 
more  such  fun  in  New  Salem  so  long  as  I  live  here." 
And  there  was  not.  Jack  was  not  cruel,  and  he  was 
one  of  Abraham's  close  friends  ;  and  so  was  his  wife, 
Hannah.  She  said,  a  few  years  ago  :  "  Abe  would 
come  out  to  our  house,  about  three  miles,  drink  milk, 
eat  mush,  corn-bread  and  butter,  bring  the  children 
candy,  and  rock  the  cradle  while  I  got  him  something 
to  eat.  .  .  He  would  tend  babies  and  do  any  thing  to 
accommodate  anybody." 


UNSOUGHT  HONORS.  259 

On  a  cold  winter  day  he  saw  Ab  Trent  cutting  up 
an  old  house  for  Mr.  Hill  into  firewood.  Ab  was  bare- 
rootea,  and  shivered  with  the  cold. 

"What  do  you  get  for  that  job?"  Abraham  in- 
quired. 

"  One  dollar,"  replied  Ab  ;  "  I  want  a  pair  of  shoes," 
and  he  pointed  to  his  almost  frozen  feet. 

"  Well,  give  me  your  axe,"  continued  Abraham, 
seizing  it,  "and  you  clear  to  the  house  where  it  is 
warm." 

Ab  "cleared,"  glad  to  put  his  bare  feet  to  a  fire, 
and  Abraham  cut  up  the  "  house  "  so  quickly,  that 
"  Ab  and  the  owner  were  both  amazed  when  they  saw 
it  done." 

About  this  time,  Henry  McHenry  had  a  horse-race 
and  he  applied  to  Abraham  to  act  as  judge. 

"  No  ;  I've  done  with  that,"  replied  Abraham. 

"  But  you  must,"  urged  McHenry. 

"  I  must  not,  and  I  will  not,"  responded  Abraham, 
with  more  emphasis.  "  This  horse-racing  business  is 
all  wrong." 

"Just  this  once;  never'll  ask  you  again,"  said  Mc- 
Henry. 

"Well,  remember,  'just  this  once'  it  is,"  was  Abra- 
ham's conclusion.  He  acted  as  judge,  and  decided 
correctly.  The  judge  for  the  other  side  said,  "  Lin- 
coln is  the  fairest  man  I  ever  had  to  deal  with ;  if 
Lincoln  is  in  this  county  when  1  die,  I  want  him  to 
be  my  administrator,  for  he  is  the  only  man  I  ever 
met  with  that  was  wholly  and  unselfishly  honest." 
This  is  another  of  the  incidents  that  show  how  he 
came  to  be  known  as  "Honest  Abe." 


26o       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE 

James  Short,  who  lived  four  miles  from  New  Salem, 
says  that  Abraham  often  came  to  his  house,  and,  if  it 
was  a  very  busy  time  on  the  farm,  "  Abe  would  pull  off 
his  roundabout  and  go  to  work  with  more  energy  than 
any  man  I  could  hire.  He  was  the  best  man  at  husk- 
ing  corn  on  the  stock  I  ever  saw.  I  used  to  consider 
myself  very  good,  but  he  would  gather  two  loads  t« 
my  one." 

In  1833,  President  Jackson  appointed  him  postmas 
ter  of  New  Salem,  because  he  was  better  qualified  foi 
the  position  than  any  man  in  the  town.  The  post 
office  was  kept  in  Mr.  Hill's  store,  the  proprietor  tak- 
ing charge  of  it  when  Lincoln  was  engaged  in  survey- 
ing or  other  business.  When  he  was  in  the  office,  he 
made  himself  useful  by  reading  letters  for  parties  who 
could  not  read.  He  read  all  the  newspapers  received 
at  the  office,  and  frequently  read  them  aloud  to  an 
ignorant  assembly  in  front  of  the  store. 

A  story  which  fastened  itself  to  him  in  manhood  was 
that,  when  he  was  Postmaster  in  New  Salem,  he  "carried 
the  office  in  his  hat."  Of  course  mail-matter  at  such 
an  office  was  light.  Few  letters  were  received  ;  and, 
sometimes,  when  Lincoln  was  going  out,  he  would  put 
the  letters  in  his  hat,  that  he  might  deliver  them  to 
the  parties  addressed,  should  he  meet  them  or  go  near 
their  residences.  This  novel  arrangement  discloses 
both  his  kindness  of  heart  and  fidelity  to  trusts. 


CHAPTER    XX. 

LAURELS    WON 

IEMBERS  of  the  Legislature  served  twa 
years  in  Illinois,  so  that  the  next  election 
occurred  in  1834.  Lincoln  was  a  candidate. 
There  was  a  Whig  party  then,  and  he  was  a 
member  of  it.  Yet  many  Democrats  supported  him 
in  the  contest,  so  that  he  was  elected  by  a  larger  ma- 
jority than  any  other  man  on  the  ticket. 

"  Who  is  this  man  Lincoln  I  hear  talked  about  for 
the  Legislature  ?  "  inquired  one  Dr.  Barrett,  who  was 
a  stranger  to  the  candidate,  but  a  friend  of  Herndon. 
The  question  was  put  to  the  latter. 

"  Go  to  Berlin  to-morrow,  and  you  will  learn  who  he 
is  ;  he  is  going  to  speak  there,"  Herndon  replied. 

Dr.  Barrett  was  there  promptly,  and  when  the  tall, 
awkward,  homely  candidate  was  pointed  out  by  Hern- 
don, he  said,  — 

"  Can 't  the  party  raise  any  better  material  than 
that ! " 

"Wait,"  answered  Herndon,  "until  you  hear  his 
speech  before  you  pass  judgment.  ,  He  is  our  candi- 
date, and  good  material  enough  for  us." 

"Well,  if  that  fellow  is  qualified  to  go  to  the  Legis- 


262        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

lature,  then  his  looks  belie  him  ;  that 's  all,"  continued 
Dr.  Barrett. 

He  soon  heard  his  speech,  however  ;  and,  at  the 
inclusion  of  it,  Herndon  inquired,  — 

"  Doctor,  what  do  you  think  now?" 

"  I  give  it  up  now.  Why,  sir,  he  is  a  perfect  take- 
in, —  he  knows  more  than  all  of  them  put  together." 

Lincoln  received  1,376  votes,  and  was  elected,  caus- 
ing great  joy  among  his  friends.  Many  who  did  not 
vote  for  him  were  perfectly  satisfied  with  his  election. 
Nor  did  he  resort  to  the  dishonorable  means  of  getting 
votes  which  some  candidates  employed,  such  as  fur- 
nishing a  grog-shop  for  their  use  on  election  day,  and 
paying  the  bills.  He  utterly  refused  to  promote  his 
own  election  by  proffering  the  intoxicating  cup, 
although  such  was  the  custom. 

The  time  between  the  election  and  the  assembling 
of  the  Legislature,  Lincoln  spent  in  very  close  study, 
that  he  might  be  better  qualified  to  discharge  his 
duties  in  the  State  House. 

One  thing  was  indispensable  if  he  would  make  a 
respectable  appearance  in  the  Legislature ;  he  must 
have  a  new  suit  of  clothes,  and  some  money  for  ex- 
penses —  much  more  than  he  possessed.  His  wants, 
in  this  respect,  were  supplied  in  the  following  provi- 
dential manner. 

When  he  had  charge  of  Offutt's  store,  in  1832,  a 
stranger  entered  one  morning,  and  introduced  himself 
as  Mr.  Smoot.  Lincoln  jumped  over  the  counter 
and  grasped  the  stranger's  hand  in  his  cordial  way, 
saying :  — 

"  Glad  to  see  you,  Mr.  Smoot.     I  have  heard  of  you 


LAURELS   WON.  263 


often,  but  never  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  you 
before." 

"  And  I  am  equally  glad  to  meet  you,  Abe  Lincoln/' 
rejoined  Mr.  Smoot ;  "I've  heard  so  much  about  you 
that  I  feel  acquainted  already." 

Lincoln  stood  surveying  him  from  head  to  foot, 
booking  for  all  the  world  as  if  the  humor  within  him 
would  burst  out,  and  finally  remarked  :  — 

"  Smoot,  I  am  very  much  disappointed  in  you ;  I 
expected  to  see  a  scaly  specimen  of  humanity." 

Smoot,  equal  to  the  occasion,  replied  :  "  Yes  ;  and 
I  am  equally  disappointed,  for  I  expected  to  see  a 
good-looking  man  when  I  saw  you." 

This  laid  the  foundation  of  lasting  friendship  be 
tween  the  two  men ;  and,  when  Lincoln  was  elected 
to  the  Legislature,  and  needed  clothes  and  money,  he 
knew  that  Smoot  would  loan  him  the  amount.  Taking 
Hugh  Armstrong  with  him,  he  went  to  his  friend  and 
said  :  — 

"  Smoot,  did  you  vote  for  me  ?  " 

"Vote  for  you  ?     Of  course  I  did." 

"  Well,  do  you  want  I  should  make  a  decent  appear- 
ance in  the  Legislature  ?  "  added  Lincoln. 

"  Certainly  ;  I  don't  expect  you  '11  make  any  other 
appearance,  though  you  are  not  as  handsome  as  I  am," 
responded  Smoot,  humorously. 

"Then  you  will  have  to  lend  me  some  money;  I 
must  buy  some  decent  clothes." 

"  That  I  can  do  without  any  trouble  at  all ;  a 
nice  suit  of  clothes  may  make  a  handsome  man  of 
you,"  answered  Smoot.  "  How  much  money  do  you 
want?" 


264       PIONEER  HOME    TO    WHITE  HOUSE, 

"  Two  hundred  dollars,  and  will  pay  you  at  the  close 
of  the  session." 

Smoot  lent  him  two  hundred  dollars  upon  his 
word  of  honor,  and  he  says,  "  Lincoln  returned  the 
umount  to  me  according  to  promise." 

About  this  time,  Lincoln  was  exposed  to  peculiar 
temptations  to  infidelity,  through  associates  and  books. 
Several  of  his  boon  companions  were  infidels ;  and 
they  made  light  of  religion  and  the  Bible.  At  the 
same  time  Paint's  "Age  of  Reason,"  and  Volney's 
"  Ruins,"  came  into  his  hands,  and  he  read  them  with 
avidity.  In  these  circumstances,  his  belief  in  the 
Scriptures  began  to  waver.  He  expressed  his  doubts 
freely  to  others.  He  discussed  the  matter  with  inti- 
mate friends  ;  and  finally,  he  wrote  an  essay  in  which 
his  doubts  of  the  divine  authenticity  of  the  Bible  were 
plainly  expressed. 

However,  this  proved  but  a  freak  of  humanity,  such 
as  often  appears  in  the  lives  of  smart  young  men ;  for 
his  essay  was  soon  cast  aside  forever ;  and  his  early 
familiarity  with,  and  confidence  in>  the  Scriptures, 
asserted  themselves,  as  the  sequel  will  show. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  to  tell  what  "  Acts  and  Re= 
solves  "  occupied  Lincoln's  attention,  in  the  Legisla- 
ture, during  the  session.  Other  things,  bearing  upon 
his  future  career,  demand  the  brief  space  we  can 
give  this  period.  We  may  say,  however,  that  he  was 
comparatively  a  silent  member,  observing  and  learn- 
ing, though  he  was  faithful  and  efficient  on  committees. 

It  was  during  the  sitting  of  the  Legislature  that 
Lincoln  decided  to  study  law,  without  waiting  to  be 
come  seven  feet  high.     It  was  op  this  wise. 


LAURELS    WON.  265 


He  was  thrown  much  into  the  society  of  Hon.  John 
T  Stuart,  an  eminent  lawyer,  from  Springfield.  This 
gentleman  was  a  close  observer,  and  he  soon  discov- 
ered that  young  Lincoln  possessed  unusual  talents. 
He  had  no  doubt  that  he  would  make  his  mark,  if  he 
could  have  the  opportunity  ;  so  he  embraced  a  favor 
able  time  to  advise  him  about  studying  law. 

"  Have  you  ever  thought  of  studying  law  ? "  Mr 
Stuart  inquired,  in  a  delicate  manner. 

"  Never,  though  the  subject  has  been  named  to  me 
by  others,"  replied  Lincoln. 

"  And  why  have  you  not  entertained  the  suggestion 
favorably  ?" 

"  Because  I  have  not  talents  enough  to  warrant  such 
a  decision  ;  and  then  I  have  no  means,  even  if  I  had 
the  talents." 

"  Perhaps  you  have  too  exalted  views  of  the  abilities 
required.  Let  us  see.  Is  there  anything  in  the  law 
so  intricate  as  to  demand  superior  talents  ?  Does  it 
require  more  ability  than  medicine  or  theology?  No, 
I  think  you  will  say.  And  then,  if  it  did,  perhaps  the 
future  will  reveal  that  you  possess  the  talents  for  it." 

"But  then,  a  poor  fellow  like  me,  with  no  friends  to 
aid,  can  hardly  think  of  going  through  a  long  course 
of  study." 

"  It  is  not  very  long  after  all,  and  there  need  not 
be  much  expense  about  it,  except  for  your  board  and 
clothes." 

"  How  can  that  be  ?  " 

"You  can  read  law  by  yourself,  working  at  your 
business  of  surveyor  enough  to  board  and  clothe  your- 
self, and  in  less  than  three  years  be  admitted  to  the 
bar." 


266       P/OJVEEX  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

"But  books  are  expensive,  especially  law-books." 

"  Very  true  ;  but  that  difficulty  is  easily  remedied. 
You  shall  be  welcome  to  my  library.  Come  as  often 
as  you  please,  and  carry  away  as  many  books  as  you 
please,  and  keep  them  as  long  as  you  please." 

"  You  are  very  generous,  indeed.  I  could  never  re- 
pay you  for  such  generosity." 

"I  don't  ask  any  pay,  my  dear  sir,"  responded  Mr 
Stuart,  shaking  his  sides  with  laughter.  "  And  if  I 
did,  it  would  be  pay  enough  to  see  you  pleading  at  the 
bar." 

"  I  am  almost  frightened  at  the  thought  of  appear- 
ing there,"  added  Lincoln. 

"  You'd  soon  get  over  your  fright,  I  reckon,  and 
bless  your  stars  that  you  followed  the  advice  of  John 
T.  Stuart." 

"I  dare  say." 

"Only  think  of  it,"  continued  Mr.  Stuart;  "a 
brighter  prospect  is  before  you  than  hundreds  of  dis- 
tinguished men  enjoyed  in  early  life,  on  account  of  the 
advantages  offered  to  you.  You  are  a  '  Clay  man,'  and 
you  now  have  the  offer  of  better  opportunities  to  rise 
than  he  had  when  he  left  his  mother's  log  cabin.  All 
the  schooling  he  ever  enjoyed  was  in  his  boyhood, 
when  he  went  to  school  to  Peter  Deacon,  in  a  log 
school-house  without  a  window  or  floor.  All  the 
learning  he  acquired  after  that  was  by  industry  and 
perseverance,  improving  every  leisure  moment,  and 
extending  his  studies  far  into  the  night." 

"  I  don't  see  but  he  had  as  good  advantages  in  his 
early  life  as  I  did,"  interrupted  Lincoln. 

"  That  is  so  ;  and  there  is  much  in  your  history  that 


LAURELS   WON.  2&J 


reminds  me  of  his.  I  suppose  that  is  what  suggested 
the  comparison  to  me.  You  have  a  right  to  be  a  '  Clay 
man/  One  would  scarcely  have  thought,  when  he 
was  seen  riding  his  mother's  old  horse,  without  a  sad- 
dle, and  with  a  rope  for  a  bridle,  on  his  way  to  mill 
with  a  grist  on  the  horse's  back,  that  he  —  'The  Mill 
Boy  of  the  Slashes,'  as  he  was  called  —  would  become 
one  of  the  most  renowned  men  of  the  land." 

"  That  is  so  ;  and  I  admire  the  man  for  his  noble 
efforts  to  rise  in  the  world.  He  made  himself  just 
what  he  became,"  said  Lincoln. 

"  And  that  is  what  you,  and  every  other  young  man, 
will  do,  if  you  ever  make  a  mark.  '  Self-made,  or  never 
made/  is  the  adage.  It  is  of  little  consequence  what 
advantages  a  youth  possesses,  unless  he  is  disposed  to 
improve  them  ;  and  I  am  almost  of  the  opinion  that  it 
matters  but  little  how  few  the  privileges  a  young  man 
enjoys,  if  he  only  possesses  the  energy  and  industry 
to  make  the  most  of  them." 

"  And  the  ability,  you  might  add,"  suggested  Lin- 
coln. 

"  Perhaps  so,  if  you  choose.  But  the  history  of  our 
country  abounds  with  examples  of  these  self-made 
men,  as  poor  and  unknown  as  Henry  Clay  was.  But 
now  I  must  go ;  remember  my  counsel,  and  decide 
rightly." 

"  Many  thanks  for  your  interest,"  answered  Lincoln. 
"  I  shall  ponder  the  subject,  and  feel  grateful  to  you, 
whether  I  decide  as  you  recommend  or  not." 

Lincoln  decided  to  study  law.  He  concluded  that 
he  must  possess  some  ability  for  the  legal  profession 
when  such  a  man  as  Mr.  Stuart  advised  him  to  enter 


268       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

it.  More  than  any  other  influence,  the  counsel  of  Mr, 
Stuart  determined  him  to  become  a  lawyer. 

There  was  much  joy  among  Lincoln's  friends  in 
New  Salem  when  they  learned  of  his  wise  decision. 
All  were  ready  to  render  him  any  assistance  possible. 
His  own  familiar  associates  soon  found  that  his  studies 
would  interfere  constantly  with  that  social  intercourse 
which  they  had  enjoyed  so  much.  To  pursue  his 
studies,  while  earning  a  livelihood  by  surveying,  would 
require  an  amount  of  industry,  perseverance  and  self- 
denial  of  which  they  understood  but  little. 

"  I  am  as  fond  of  society  as  either  of  you,"  remarked 
Lincoln  to  several  of  his  companions  who  were  discuss- 
ing the  question  together  at  one  time;  "but  I  must 
deny  myself  this  enjoyment,  if  I  would  succeed  in  my 
plans.  It  is  pretty  clear  that  I  must  do  two  things  :  I 
must  practise  economy  of  time  and  money,  and  be  as 
industrious  as  possible." 

"  A  solemn  view  of  the  future,"  remarked  Alley,  in 
a  playful  way. 

"  And  a  correct  one,  too,  I  guess,"  said  Green. 

"  Correct  or  not,"  responded  Lincoln,  "  it  is  the 
course  I  have  mapped  out  for  myself,  and  I  must  not 
depart  from  it." 

This  decision  was  in  response  to  an  appeal  to  engage 
in  a  definite  pastime  that  would  interrupt  his  studies 
for  a  whole  evening. 

"  I  shall  walk  to  Springfield  and  back  to-morrow," 
he  continued.  "  Esquire  Stuart  has  offered  to  loan 
me  law-books,  and  I  shall  go  for  some  to-morrow." 

Here  is  an  illustration  of  his  self-denial,  and  the 
decision  with  which  he  adhered  to  his  purpose.     He 


LAURELS    WON.  26$ 


canvassed  tnt;  whole  subject  in  the  beginning,  and  he 
resolved  to  spend  no  evenings  in  social  entertain- 
ments. He  saw  that  he  must  do  it  from  sheer  neces- 
sity, as  he  would  be  obliged  to  use  up  the  night  hours 
much  more  economically  than  the  laws  of  health 
would  permit.  And  r*cw  he  was  inflexible.  His  pur- 
pose  was  fixed,  and  no  allurements  or  promises  of 
pleasure  could  make  him  swerve  a  hair's  breadth 
therefrom. 

Springfield  was  twenty  two  miles  from  New  Salem, 
and  yet  Lincoln  walked  there  and  back  on  the  day 
proposed.  He  made  a  long  day  of  it,  and  a  wearisome 
one,  too.  On  the  following  evening  Green  called  upon 
him,  to  learn  how  he  succeeded. 

"  What!  "  he  exclaimed.  "  Did  you  bring  all  these 
books  home  in  your  arms  ?"  They  were  Blackstone's 
Commentaries,  in  four  volumes. 

"  Yes  ;  and  read  forty  pages  of  the  first  volume  on 
the  way,"  Lincoln  replied.  "  Come,  now,  just  examine 
me  on  the  first  volume." 

He  had  a  faculty  of  perusing  a  volume  when  he  was 
walking,  and  he  often  did  it.     He  gained  time  thereby. 

i(  I  don't  see  what  you  are  made  of  to  endure  so," 
continued  Green.  "  It  would  use  me  all  up  to  carry 
such  a  load  a  quarter  part  of  that  distance.,, 

"  I  am  used  to  it,  you  know,  and  that  makes  the 
difference.  But,  come,  just  see  what  I  know  about 
the  first  part  of  that  volume."  And  he  passed  the 
first  volume  to  him. 

"  If  you  pass  muster,  you'll  want  I  should  admit  you 
to  the  bar,  I  suppose,"  responded  Green.  "That  I 
shall  be  glad  to  do." 


2/G       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

So  he  proceeded  to  examine  Lincoln  on  the  first 
volume  ;  and  he  found,  to  his  surprise,  that  he  was  well 
posted  on  the  forty  pages  read.  By  his  close  atten- 
tion, and  the  ability  to  concentrate  his  thoughts,  he 
readily  made  what  he  read  his  own. 

Thus    Lincoln    began  and   continued  the   study   c 
law,  alternating  his  time  between  surveying  and  study, 
going  to  Springfield  for  books  as  often  as  it  was  neces- 
sary, and  often  pursuing  his  reading  of  law  far  into  the 
night. 

With  such  devotion  did  he  employ  his  time  in  study 
and  manual  labor,  denying  himseTf  much  that  young 
men  generally  consider  essential,  that  he  might  have 
said,  as  Cicero  said  of  himself  :  "What  others  give  to 
public  shows  and  entertainments,  to  festivity,  U 
amusements,  nay,  even  to  mental  and  bodily  rest,  I 
give  to  study  and  philosophy/'  Even  when  he  was 
engaged  in  the  fields  surveying,  his  thoughts  were 
upon  his  books,  so  that  much  which  he  learned  at 
night  was  fastened  in  his  mind  by  day.  He  might 
have  adopted  the  language  of  Cicero  concerning  him- 
self :  "Even  my  leisure  hours  have  their  occupation." 

Sometimes  he  was  engaged  days  and  weeks  together 
in  surveying,  having  only  his  nights  in  which  to 
study ;  and  then,  again,  he  had  both  day  and  night  to 
give  to  his  books  for  a  time.  Nor  did  his  interest 
abate  in  the  least ;  it  rather  increased  than  otherwise. 
The  longer  he  studied,  the  more  deeply  absorbed 
he  became  in  his  books.  His  robust  physical  con- 
stitution enabled  him  to  endure  hard  toil  both  of 
body  and  mind,  otherwise  he  would  have  broken 
dowu 


LAURELS  WON.  2J\ 

*■       ■ — ■ — ' — ■ — — — — ■ — — * 

He  served  his  constituents  so  faithfully  in  the  Leg- 
islature, that  he  was  renominated  for  the  position 
in  1836.  He  had  grown  so  rapidly  in  mental  power, 
that,  in  this  campaign,  his  speeches  were  of  high 
order.  R.  L.  Wilson,  who  was  a  Representative  elect 
with  Lincoln,  says  :  — 

"  The  Saturday  evening  preceding  the  election,  the 
candidates  were  addressing  the  people  in  the  Court 
House  at  Springfield.  Dr.  Early,  one  of  the  candi- 
dates on  the  Democratic  side,  made  some  charge  that 
N.  W.  Edwards,  one  of  the  candidates  on  the  Whig 
side,  deemed  untrue.  Edwards  climbed  on  a  table,  so 
as  to  be  seen  by  Early  and  by  every  one  in  the  house, 
and  at  the  top  of  his  voice  told  Early  that  the  charge 
was  false.  The  excitement  that  followed  was  intense, 
—  so  much  so,  that  fighting  men  thought  a  duel  must 
settle  the  difficulty.  Mr.  Lincoln,  by  the  programme, 
followed  Early.  He  took  up  the  subject  in  dispute, 
and  handled  it  fairly,  and  with  such  ability,  that  every 
one  was  astonished  and  pleased.  So  that  difficulty 
ended  there.  Then  for  the  first  time,  developed  by 
the  excitement  of  the  occasion,  he  spoke  in  that  tenor 
intonation  of  voice,  that  ultimately  settled  down  into 
a  clear,  shrill,  monotonous  style  of  speaking,  that 
enabled  his  audience,  howrever  large,  to  hear  distinctly 
the  lowest  sound  of  his  voice." 

Lincoln  was  followed  in  that  meeting  by  George 
Forquer,  who  was  a  prominent  Whig  member  of  the 
Legislature  in  1834,  but  left  his  party  for  the  sake  of 
getting  the  berth  of  Register  of  the  Land  Office  at 
Springfield.  He  was  a  wily  politician,  ready  to 
change  front  at  any  time,  and  to  resort  to  political 


2J2       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

tricks  for  the  sake  of  office.  Forquer  assailed  Lincoln 
bitterly,  and  began  his  speech  by  saying,  "the  young 
man  must  be  taken  down."  Lincoln  stood  by  and 
listened  to  every  word.  As  soon  as  Forquer  closed 
his  tirade,  Lincoln  mounted  the  platform,  and  replied 
"with  great  dignity  and  force/'  closing  his  speech 
thus : — 

"  The  gentleman  says  '  this  young  man  must  be 
taken  down/  It  is  for  you,  not  for  me,  to  say  whether 
I  am  up  or  down.  The  gentleman  has  alluded  to  my 
being  a  young  man;  I  am  older  in  years  than  I  am  in 
the  tricks  and  trades  of  politicians.  I  desire  to  live, 
and  I  desire  place  and  distinction  as  a  politician ;  but 
I  would  rather  die  now,  than,  like  the  gentleman,  live 
to  see  the  day  that  I  would  have  to  erect  a  lightning- 
rod  to  protect  a  guilty  conscience  from  an  offended 
God/*  This  termination  of  his  speech  convulsed  the 
audience,  and  they  roared  with  laughter,  and  cheered, 
at  Forquer's  expense. 

In  the  Legislature  of  1836-37,  Lincoln  found  him- 
self  associated  with  many  men  who  became  great  in 
public  life  thereafter — Stephen  A.  Douglas,  James 
Shields,  John  A.  McClernand,  Dan  Stone,  Edward  D. 
Baker,  John  J.  Hardin,  and  a  dozen  others  of  equal 
ability. 

There  were  nine  Representatives  from  Sangamon 
County,  and  not  one  of  them  was  less  than  six  feet 
high,  Lincoln  was  the  tallest  of  the  number.  Mem- 
bers of  the  Legislature  dubbed  them  "The  Long 
Nine  ; "  and  they  said,  "  Lincoln  is  the  longest/* 

Lincoln's  second  term  in  the  Legislature  brought 
him   face   to   face  with   the    Slavery   question.     The 


LAURELS  WON.  273 


"  Abolitionists "  had  been  busily  at  work,  scattering 
anti-slavery  literature  North  and  South,  lecturing  in 
the  Free  States  upon  the  sin  and  curse  of  Slavery, 
and  agitating  the  subject  in  every  possible  way.  The 
State  governments,  even  at  the  North,  were  bent  on 
suppressing  these  "agitators,"  as  they  were  called. 
Even  the  governors  of  Massachusetts  and  New  York 
denounced  them,  as  if  they  were  more  dangerous  than 
horse-thieves.  The  bitterest  feeling  prevailed  against 
them  in  Illinois ;  and  one  of  cheir  leaders,  Rev.  E.  P. 
Lovejoy,  who  published  an  anti-slavery  paper  at 
Alton,  in  that  State,  was  shot  while  defending  his 
printing-office  against  the  attacks  of  a  pro-slavery 
mob. 

In  these  circumstances,  the  Democratic  party  of 
Illinois,  largely  in  the  majority  in  the  Legislature, 
waxed  bold  and  violent.  In  the  great  excitement 
they  introduced  a  series  of  resolutions  against  "abo- 
litionists," and  in  favor  of  Slavery,  that  would  have 
been  a  disgrace  to  any  Slave  State.  They  sought  to 
intimidate  and  lash  the  Whigs  into  the  support  of  the 
infamous  measures  ;  and  they  succeeded  with  most  of 
them  except  Abraham  Lincoln.  He  denounced  the 
resolutions  and  the  party  which  introduced  them.  He 
spoke  against  them,  and  voted  against  them  ;  and  he 
drew  one  Whig  to  hi^  side  —  Dan  Stone  —  who  stood 
with  him  fearlessly  to  the  end.  And  when  the  House 
finally  adopted  them,  these  two  members  presented  a 
carefully  prepared  protest  against  the  measure,  as 
"injustice"  and  "bad  policy,"  and  asked  to  have  it 
entered,  in  their  name,  upon  the  journal  of  the  House. 
His  good  fight  for  Freedom  in  the  House,  from  1836 


274       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

to  1838,  put  him  before  the  State  and  the  country 
as  a  fearless  and  powerful  opponent  of  the  slave 
system. 

It  was  during  this  legislative  term  that  an  act  was 
passed,  removing  the  capital  from  Vandalia  to  Spring- 
field ;  and  the  prime  mover  in  it  was  Lincoln.  To 
him  was  credited  the  success  of  the  measure,  which 
proved  of  great  value  to  the  State. 

Lincoln  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1837,  and,  soon 
after,  removed  to  Springfield,  and  became  the  partner 
of  John  T.  Stuart,  his  benefactor,  in  the  practice  of 
law,  and  he  boarded  with  Hon.  William  Butler.  In 
New  Salem,  for  two  years  before,  "  he  wrote  deeds, 
contracts,  notes,  and  other  legal  papers  for  his  neigh- 
bors ;  and  i  pettifogged '  before  the  justice  of  the  peace ; 
but  in  all  this  he  was  only  trying  himself,  and  never 
charged  a  penny  for  his  services." 

In  1838,  he  was  elected,  for  a  third  term,  to  the 
House  of  Representatives,  by  a  larger  majority  than 
ever.  He  was  candidate  for  Speaker  at  this  term ;  but 
the  Democrats  being  largely  in  the  ascendancy  elected 
their  candidate.  An  incident  is  related  by  Mr.  Wilson, 
connected  with  the  campaign  that  preceded  the  elec 
tion  of  1838,  illustrative  of  Lincoln's  decided  temper- 
ance principles.  Mr.  Wilson  accompanied  him  in  his 
stumping  tours,  and  he  says  :  "  At  that  time  it  was 
the  universal  custom  to  keep  some  whiskey  in  the 
house,  for  private  use  and  to  treat  friends.  The  sub- 
ject was  always  mentioned  as  a  matter  of  etiquette, 
but  with  the  remark  to  Mr.  Lincoln:  'You  never 
drink,  but  may  be  your  friend  would  like  to  take  a  lit- 
tle/    I  never  saw  Mr.  Lincoln  drink.     He  often  told 


LAURELS  WON.  275 


me  that  he  never  drank ;  had  no  desire  to  drink,  nor 
for  the  companionship  of  drinking  men." 

During  that  campaign,  a  dinner  was  tendered  to  the 
"  Long  Nine,"  at  Athene ;  where,  in  response  to  the 
toast,  "  Abraham  Lincoln,  one  of  Nature's  noble- 
men," he  delivered  one  of  his  ablest  speeches.  It  was 
universally  agreed  that  the  toast  was  a  deserved  com- 
pliment. 

Before  Lincoln  removed  to  Springfield,  he  was  in- 
vited by  the  "  Young  Men's  Lyceum  "  of  that  town, 
to  deliver  a  literary  lecture  before  them.  The  invita- 
tion shows  that  he  had  won  a  wide  reputation,  although 
he  was  only  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  and  only  six 
years  removed  from  the  log-cabin  that  he  built  for  his 
father  in  Macon  County.  His  subject,  on  that  occa- 
sion, was :  "  The  Perpetuation  of  Our  Free  Institu- 
tions." He  handled  it  in  a  manner  that  showed  the 
familiarity  of  a  statesman  with  the  genius  and  history 
of  Republican  institutions. 

Lincoln  was  re-elected  once  more  to  the  House  of 
Representatives  in  1840.  The  campaign  was  a  very 
hot  one,  the  Democrats  in  several  localities  making 
violent  demonstrations.  Colonel  E.  D.  Baker  was 
making  a  speech  to  a  promiscuous  assembly  in  the 
court-room  at  Springfield,  when  the  Democrats  pro- 
posed to  "  pull  him  off  the  stage."  A  riot  was  impend- 
ing, when  Lincoln  threw  himself  between  his  friend 
and  the  audience,  exclaiming  :  — 

"Gentlemen!  let  us  not  disgrace  the  age  and 
country  in  which  we  live.  This  is  a  land  where  free- 
dom of  speech  is  guaranteed.  Mr.  Baker  has  a  right  to 
speak,  and  ought  to  be  permitted  to  do  so.     I  am  here 


276       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

to  protect  him,  and  no  man  shall  take  him  from  this 
stand,  if  I  can  prevent  it."  Mr.  Baker  proceeded 
without  interruption  thereafter. 

There  was  a  very  troublesome  member  in  that 
Legislature  from  Wabash  County.  He  was  frequently 
upon  his  feet  opposing  measures  on  the  ground  of 
*'  unconstitutionality."  His  stereotyped  cry  against  this 
and  that  measure  was  "  unconstitutional."  Lincoln 
was  deputed  to  silence  him  ;  and  he  soon  enjoyed  the 
opportunity.  A  measure  was  introduced,  in  which 
Lincoln's  constituents  were  specially  interested.  The 
member  from  Wabash  immediately  arose,  and  ex- 
pended his  utmost  energies  upon  its  " unconstitutional" 
features,  although  others  could  not  discover  them.  Mr. 
Lincoln  arose  and  said  :  — 

"  Mr.  Speaker,  the  attack  of  the  member  from  Wabash 
upon  the  unconstitutionality  of  this  measure  reminds 
me  of  an  old  friend  of  mine.  He  is  a  peculiar-looking 
old  fellow,  with  shaggy,  overhanging  eyebrows,  and  a 
pair  of  spectacles  under  them.  (Here  every  member 
turned  to  the  man  from  Wabash,  and  recognized 
a  personal  description.)  One  morning,  just  after  the 
old  man  got  up,  he  imagined  he  saw  a  squirrel  on  a 
tree  near  his  house.  So  he  took  down  his  rifle,  and 
fired  at  the  squirrel,  but  the  squirrel  paid  no  attention 
to  the  shot.  He  loaded  and  fired  again  and  again, 
until,  at  the  thirteenth  shot,  he  set  down  his  gun 
impatiently,  and  said  to  his  boy,  who  was  looking  on, 
s  Boy,  there's  something  wrong  about  this  rifle. '  '  Rifle's 
all  right,  I  know  'tis/  responded  the  boy,  '  but  where's 
your  squirrel  ?  'Don't  you  see  him,  humped  up  about 
half-way  up  the  tree  ? '  inquired  the  old  man,  peering 


LAURELS  WON.  277 


over  his  spectacles,  and  getting  mystified.  'No,  I 
don't/  responded  the  boy ;  and  then  turning  and  look- 
ing into  his  father's  face,  he  exclaimed,  'I  see  your 
squirrel.  You've  been  firing  at  a  louse  on  your  eye- 
brow !  ■  " 

The  House  was  convulsed  with  laughter,  and  the 
member  from  Wabash  dropped  his  "unconstitutional'9 
dodge. 

Mr.  Lincoln  grew  rapidly  in  public  favor  as  a  lawyer, 
and  within  ten  years  after  he  left  his  log-cabin  home, 
in  Macon  County,  citizens  of  Springfield  would  point 
him  out  to  strangers  on  the  street,  and  say  :  "  One  of 
the  ablest  lawyers  in  Illinois." 

His  partnership  with  Mr.  Stuart  terminated  in 
1840,  and  he  soon  after  associated  himself  with  Judge 
S.  T.  Logan.  He  married  Miss  Mary  Todd,  daughter 
of  Honorable  Robert  S.  Todd  of  Lexington,  Kentucky, 
in  1842,  when  he  was  thirty-three  years  of  age. 
The  fruits  of  this  marriage  were  four  sons,  viz. 
Robert,  Edwards,  William,  and  Thomas.  Edwards 
died  in  infancy ;  William  died  at  the  age  of  twelve  years 
in  Washington  ;  Thomas  died  in  Illinois  at  the  age  of 
twenty ;  and  Robert  is  now  our  honored  secretary 
of  war  at  Washington. 

Soon  after  his  marriage  he  wrote  two  letters,  which 
so  reveal  his  strong  friendships  as  well  as  his  simplicity 
of  character,  that  we  quote  a  brief  extract  from  each. 
The  first  he  wrote  to  his  old  friend,  J.  F.  Speed  of 
Louisville,  Kentucky,  and  in  addition  to  the  character- 
istics of  the  man  which  it  reveals,  it  discloses  some- 
what his  humble  mode  of  living.  "  We  are  not  keep- 
ing house,  but  boarding  at  the  Globe  Tavern,  which  is 


27^       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

very  well  kept  now  by  a  widow  by  the  name  of  Beck. 
Boarding  only  costs  four  dollars  a  week.  I  most 
heartily  wish  you  and  your  Fanny  will  not  fail  to  come. 
Just  let  us  know  the  time  a  week  in  advance,  and  we 
will  have  a  room  prepared  for  you,  and  we  '11  be  merry 
together  for  a  while." 

The  other  letter  was  penned  to  newly  married 
friends  in  another  State,  about  a  month  after  his  own 
marriage.  "  I  have  no  way  of  telling  you  how  much 
happiness  I  wish  you  both,  though  I  believe  you  both 
can  conceive  it.  I  feel  somewhat  jealous  of  both  of  you 
now,  for  you  will  be  so  exclusively  concerned  for  one 
another,  that  I  shall  be  forgotten  entirely.  I  regret 
to  learn  that  you  have  resolved  not  to  return  to 
Illinois  :  I  shall  be  very  lonesome  without  you.  How 
miserably  things  seem  to  be  arranged  in  this  world  !  If 
we  have  no  friends  we  have  no  pleasure,  and  if  we 
have  them,  we  are  sure  to  lose  them,  and  be  doubly 
pained  by  the  loss.  I  did  hope  she  and  you  would 
make  your  home  here,  yet  I  own  I  have  no  right  to 
insist.  You  owe  obligations  to  her  ten  thousand  times 
more  sacred  than  any  you  can  owe  to  others,  and  in 
that  light  let  them  be  respected  and  observed.  It  is 
natural  that  she  should  desire  to  remain  with  her  rela- 
tives and  friends.  As  to  friends,  she  could  not  need 
them  anywhere  :  —  she  would  have  them  in  abundance 
here.  Write  me  often,  and  believe  me,  yours  forever, 
Lincoln."  His  heart  was  in  his  pen,  as  it  usually  was 
in  his  hand. 


CHAPTER    XXI 

A   SUCCESSFUL   LAWYER. 

|HEN  Lincoln  commenced  the  practice  of  law 
he  was  too  poor  to  own  a  horse  and  saddle 
bags.     He  was  obliged  to  borrow  this  outfit 
of  a  friend,  until  he  scraped  together  enough 
money  to  purchase  one. 

"But  why  did  he  need  a  horse  and  saddle-bags  ? " 
the  reader  will  ask. 

At  that  time,  the  Court  went  to  the  clients  instead 
of  the  clients  going  to  the  Court.  That  is,  Court 
bus'ness  was  laid  out  in  Circuits  ;  and  the  Court  trav- 
elled from  place  to  place,  holding  sessions,  and  trans- 
acting such  business  as  the  locality  brought  to  it. 
Lincoln  was  in  the  "  Eighth  Judicial  Circuit "  of 
Illinois ;  and  for  several  years  travelled  over  it  on 
horseback,  with  no  other  outfit  than  the  contents  o\ 
his  saddle-bags  and  a  cotton  umbrella.  A  longer  01 
shorter  period  was  occupied  in  completing  the  "Cir 
cuit,"  according  to  the  amount  of  business  brought  to 
the  Court.  Lincoln  was  sometimes  absent  three 
months  from  home  on  the  Circuit.  During  one  of 
these  long  absences,  his  wife  had  a  second  story  and 
new  roof  put  upon  their  house,  as  a  surprise  to  him 


280        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

It  was  nicely  finished  when  he  returned.  Coming  in 
front  of  his  old  home,  he  sat  upon  his  horse  surveying 
the  changed  habitation,  and  pretending  not  to  recog- 
nize it,  he  called  to  a  man  across  the  street :  — 

"  Stranger,  can  you  tell  me  where  Lincoln  lives? 
He  used  to  live  here." 

When  he  got  a  little  more  of  this  world's  goods> 
he  set  up  a  one-horse  buggy,  —  a  very  sorry  and  shabby- 
looking  affair,  which  he  generally  used  when  the  weathei 
promised  to  be  bad.  But  the  lawyers  were  always  glad 
to  see  him,  and  the  landlords  hailed  his  coming  with 
pleasure. 

Honesty,  kindness,  generosity,  fairness,  justice,  and 
kindred  qualities,  distinguished  him  in  the  practice  of 
law.  A  whole  volume  of  incidents  might  be  related, 
illustrating  these  qualities  of  the  man,  but  a  few  only 
can  be  given. 

A  stranger  called  to  secure  his  services. 

"  State  your  case,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln.  The  man 
stated  it  at  considerable  length,  when  Lincoln  sur- 
prised him  by  saying  :  — 

"  I  cannot  serve  you  ;  for  you  are  wrong  and  the 
other  party  is  right." 

"That  is  none  of  your  business,  if  I  hire  and  pay  you 
Co?  taking  the  case,"  retorted  the  man. 

"Not  my  business!"  exclaimed  Lincoln.  "My 
business  is  never  to  defend  wrong  if  I  am  a  lawyer* 
I  never  take  a  case  that  is  manifestly  wrong." 

"  Well,  you  can  make  trouble  for  the  fellow,"  added 
the  applicant. 

"Yes,"  responded  Lincoln,  "  there  is  no  reasonable 
doubt  but  that  I  can  gain  the  case  for  you.    I  can  set  a 


A   SUCCESSFUL   LAV/ YE R.  28 1 

whole  neighborhood  at  loggerheads  ;  I  can  distress  a 
widowed  mother  and  her  six  fatherless  children,  and 
thereby  get  for  you  six  hundred  dollars,  which  right- 
fully belongs  as  much  to  the  woman  and  her  children 
as  it  does  to  you.     But  I  won't  do  it." 

"  Not  for  any  amount  of  pay  ?  "  inquired  the  man. 

"Not  for  all  you  are  worth,"  replied  Lincoln.  "Yon 
must  remember  that  some  things  which  are  legally 
right  are  not  morally  right.  I  shall  not  take  youu 
case." 

"I  don't  care  a  snap  whether  you  do  or  not,"  angrily 
replied  the  man,  starting  to  go ;  "  there  are  other  law 
yers  in  the  State." 

"  I'll  give  you  a  piece  of  advice  without  charge/' 
added  Lincoln.  "You  seem  to  be  a  sprightly,  ener 
getic  man.  I  would  advise  you  to  try  your  hand  at 
making  six  hundred  dollars  some  other  way." 

One  afternoon  an  old  colored  woman  came  into  th< 
office  of  Lincoln  and  Herndon  *  to  tell  her  sad  story 
She  was  once  the  slave  of  one  Hinkle  in  Kentuck) 
who  brought  herself  and  children   into   Illinois,   an^ 
made  them  free.     Her  son  had  gone  down  to  New 
Orleans   on   a   steamer,    and  very   imprudently  went 
ashore,  when  the  police  arrested  him,  under  a  State 
law  that  authorized  the  seizure  and  sale  of  free  negroes 
from  other  States ;   and  he  would  be  sold  back  into 
slavery  unless  immediately  redeemed.     Lincoln's  sym- 
pathetic nature  was  deeply  stirred,  and  his  indignation 
was  also  aroused. 

"Run  over  to  the  State  House  and  ask  Governor 

*  Lincoln  terminated  partnership  with  Judge  Logan  in  i845t 
and  then  associated  himself  with  William  H.  Herndon,  Esq. 


282       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Bissell  if   something  cannot    be    done  to  obtain  pos< 
session  6f  the  negro,"  he  said  to  Mr.  Herndon. 

The  inquiry  was  soon  made,  and  Herndon  returned 
to  say:  "The  governor  says  that  he  has  no  legal  or 
constitutional  right  to  do  anything  in  the  premises." 

Lincoln  was  thoroughly  aroused  by  this  feature  of 
inhumanity  which  the  legal  status  disclosed,  and  start- 
ing to  his  feet,  and  raising  his  long,  right  arm  heaven- 
ward, he  exclaimed:  — 

"  By  the  Almighty's  help,  I'll  have  the  negro  back 
soon,  or  I'll  have  a  twenty  years'  agitation  in  Illinois, 
until  the  governor  does  have  a  legal  and  constitutional 
right  to  do  something  in  the  premises." 

He  and  his  partner  immediately  sent  money  of  their 
own  to  a  New  Orleans  correspondent,  who  procured 
the  negro  and  returned  him  to  his  mother. 

A  person  applied  to  Colonel  E.  D.  Baker,  who  after- 
wards became  United  States  Senator  from  Oregon* 
for  aid  in  behalf  of  a  fugitive  slave. 

"I'm  sorry  that  I  cannot  serve  you,"  Colonel  Baker 
replied;  "I  should  be  glad  to  help  the  fugitive,  but, 
as  a  political  man,  I  cannot  afford  it." 

The  applicant  then  sought  the  advice  of  an  ardent 
anti-slavery  friend,  who  said  :  — 

"  Go  to  Lincoln ;  he's  not  afraid  of  an  unpopular 
case.  When  I  go  for  a  lawyer  to  defend  an  arrested 
fugitive  slave,  other  lawyers  will  refuse  me,  but  if  Mr. 
Lincoln  is  at  home,  he  will  always  take  my  case." 

Judge  Treat  furnishes  the  following  :  — 

"  A  case  being  called  for  hearing  in  the  court,  Mr 
Lincoln  stated  that  he  appeared  for  the  appellant,  and 
was  ready  to  proceed  with  the  argument.     He  then 


A   SUCCESSFUL   LAWYER.  283 

said  :  '  This  is  the  first  case  I  have  ever  had  in  this 
court,  [it  was  just  after  he  was  admitted  to  practice  in 
the  Circuit  Court  of  the  United  States,  Dec.  3d,  1839,] 
and  I  have  therefore  examined  it  with  great  care.  As 
the  court  will  perceive,  by  looking  at  the  abstract  of 
the  record,  the  only  question  in  the  case  is  one  oi 
authority.  I  have  not  been  able  to  find  any  authority 
to  sustain  my  side  of  the  case,  but  I  have found  several 
cases  directly  in  point  on  the  other  side.  I  will  now 
give  these  cases,  and  then  submit  the  case.'  " 

One  lawyer,  who  could  not  understand  that  the 
true  purpose  of  a  court  is  to  "  establish  justice,"  re- 
marked, "The  fellow  is  crazy." 

Once,  in  a  closely-contested  civil  suit,  he  found  him- 
self upon  the  wrong  side  of  the  case.  His  client  had 
misrepresented  the  case,  being  "a  slippery  fellow." 
Lincoln  succeeded  in  proving  an  account  for  his  client, 
when  the  opposing  attorney  then  "  proved  a  receipt 
covering  the  entire  cause  of  action."  By  the  time  he 
was  through,  Lincoln  had  disappeared  from  the  court- 
room. The  court  sent  to  the  hotel  for  him.  "  Tell 
the  Judge,"  said  Lincoln,  "that  I  can't  come:  my 
hands  are  dirty,  and  I  came  over  to  clean  them." 

In  the  celebrated  Patterson  trial,  a  case  of  murder, 
Lincoln  and  Swett  were  counsel  for  the  accused. 
After  hearing  the  testimony,  Lincoln  was  satisfied 
that  the  accused  was  guilty,  and  calling  his  colleague 
into  another  room,  he  said  : — ■ 

"Swett,  the  man  is  guilty." 

".No  doubt  about  that,"  Swett  replied. 

"And  you  must  defend  him;  I  can't." 

Swett  promised  to  do  it,  and  he  did  it  sc  well  tha* 


284       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

he  saved  the  guilty  man  from  justice.  They  received 
a  thousand  dollars  for  services  ;  but  Lincoln  declined 
to  take  a  cent  of  it. 

At  another  time,  he  was  defending  a  man  indicted 
for  larceny ;  and,  being  satisfied  by  the  evidence  that 
the  accused  was  guilty,  he  called  aside  his  colleagues, 
Parks  and  Young,  and  said  :  "  He  is  guilty.  If  you 
can  say  anything  for  him,  do  it  ;  I  can't.  If  I  attempt, 
the  jury  will  see  that  I  think  he  is  guilty,  and  convict 
him,  of  course." 

He  conducted  a  suit  against  a  railroad  company,  and 
damages  were  awarded  to  him.  The  railroad  com- 
pany proved,  and  the  court  allowed,  a  certain  offset ; 
and  when  the  court  was  footing  the  amount,  Lincoln 
arose  and  stated  that  his  opponents  had  not  proved 
all  that  was  justly  due  them  in  offset,  and  proceeded 
to  prove  and  allow  a  further  offset  against  his  client. 
His  purpose  was  to  establish  "  exact  justice."  Some- 
times, however,  his  sympathy  for  a  poor  fellow  who 
was  in  danger  of  the  penitentiary  or  gallows,  caused 
him  to  overlook  "exact  justice,"  as  we  have  seen. 

A  woman  called  upon  him  to  secure  his  services  to 
prosecute  a  real-estate  claim  ;  and  she  put  a  check  for 
two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  into  his  hand  as  a  retain- 
ing fee. 

"  I  will  look  the  case  over,  and  see  what  can  be 
done,"  said  Mr.  Lincoln.     "  You  may  call  to-morrow.'' 

The  woman  called  as  requested  on  the  next  day.  "  I 
am  obliged  to  say  that  there  is  not  a  peg  on  which  to 
hang  your  claim,"  Mr.  Lincoln  said  to  her. 

"How  so?"  she  inquired,  with  not  a  little  disap 
pointment. 


A   SUCCESSFUL  LAWYER.  285 

He  explained  the  case  to  her  satisfaction,  and  she 
started  to  go. 

"Wait  a  minute,"  he  urged,  fumbling  in  his  pocket; 
"here  is  the  check  you  left  with  me." 

"  But,  Mr.  Lincoln,  that  belongs  to  you ;  you  have 
earned 'it,"  she  answered. 

"  No,  no,  no,"  responded  Mr.  Lincoln  ;  "  that  would 
not  be  right.  I  can't  take  pay  for  doing  my  duty." 
And  he  insisted  that  she  should  take  the  check. 

The  testimony  of  his  legal  associates,  at  this  point,  is 
interesting.  Mr.  Gillespie  says  :  "  Mr.  Lincoln's  love 
of  justice  and  fair  play  was  his  predominating  trait.  I 
have  often  listened  to  him  when  I  thought  he  would 
state  his  case  out  of  court.  It  was  not  in  his  nature 
to  assume,  or  to  attempt  to  bolster  up,  a  false  position. 
He  would  abandon  his  case  first.  He  did  so  in  the 
case  of  Buckmaster  for  the  use  of  Denham  vs.  Beenes 
and  Arthur,  in  our  Supreme  Court,  in  which  I  hap- 
pened to  be  opposed  to  him.  Another  gentleman, 
less  fastidious,  took  Mr.  Lincoln's  place,  and  gained 
the  case." 

S.  C.  Parks,  Esq.,  says:  "I  have  often  said,  that, 
for  a  man  who  was  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  both  a 
lawyer  and  politician,  he  was  the  most  honest  man  1 
sver  knew.  He  was  not  only  morally  honest,  but  in- 
tellectually so.  He  could  not  reason  falsely  ;  if  he 
attempted  it,  he  failed.  In  politics  he  never  would 
try  to  mislead.  At  the  bar,  when  he  found  he  was 
wrong,  he  was  the  weakest  lawyer  I  ever  saw." 

His  old  friend,  Jack  Armstrong,  of  New  Salem, 
whose  kind,  good  wife  darned  his  stockings,  made  his 
shirts,  and  "  got  him  something  to  eat  while  he  rocked 


286        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

the  baby,"  died  not  long  after  Lincoln  settled  in 
Springfield.  The  baby  whom  he  rocked  had  grown 
into  a  stout  but  profligate  young  man  of  twenty-two 
years,  —  William  D.  Armstrong,  —  and  he  was  arrested 
for  murder.  The  circumstances  were  as  follows  :  — 
At  a  camp  meeting  in  Mason  County,  several  fast 
young  men  became  intoxicated,  and  then  engaged  in  a 
"free  fight,"  in  which  one  Metzgar  was  killed.  Arm- 
strong and  James  H.  Norris  were  charged  with  the 
murder.  Norris  was  "  tried  in  Mason  County,  con- 
victed of  manslaughter,  and  sentenced  to  the  peniten- 
tiary for  the  term  of  eight  years." 

"  Aunt  Hannah,"  as  Lincoln  used  to  call  his  old 
benefactress,  was  plunged  into  terrible  sorrow  for  her 
misguided  son.  She  scarcely  knew  what  to  do.  But, 
in  her  great  grief,  she  recalled  one  who  would  come 
to  her  aid  if  possible  —  "the  noble,  good  Abe,"  who 
rocked  her  Billy  when  he  was  a  baby  in  the  cradle. 
She  sat  down  and  wrote  to  Lincoln,  telling  him  of  her 
anguish,  and  beseeching  him  to  help  her  boy  if  pos- 
sible. The  appeal  brought  tears  to  Lincoln's  eyes, 
and  enlisted  his  whole  soul  to  save  the  accused  for  the 
sake  of  his  mother.  Now  was  the  time  for  him  to  re< 
quite  the  many  kindnesses  "  Aunt  Hannah  "  showed 
him  under  her  humble  roof.  He  sat  down  and  wrote 
to  her  an  affirmative  answer,  at  the  same  time  encour- 
aging her  to  hope  for  the  best,  and  asking  her  to  come 
to  Springfield  at  once.  He  pledged  his  services,  also, 
gratuitously. 

Lincoln's  letter  was  like  a  promise  from  the  skies  to 
"Aunt  Hannah."  Her  almost  broken  heart  took 
courage,  and   away  she  hastened  to    Springfield,  the 


A   SUCCESSFUL  LAWYER.  287 

i»  — — — — — ■ 

benefactress  seeking  a  benefactor  in  the  once  poor  boy 
she  helped  in  her  humble  abode. 

"Aunt  Hannah"  believed  that  her  boy  was  not 
guilty  of  murder  —  that  the  fatal  blow  was  not  struck 
by  him,  but  by  another  —  that  others  sought  to  fasten 
the  crime  upon  him  because  of  his  bad  reputation.  At 
the  close  of  the  interview,  Lincoln  was  of  the  same 
opinion ;  or,  at  least,  thought  there  was  no  positive 
evidence  that  her  son  was  the  murderer.  His  heart 
was  so  thoroughly  moved  for  the  old  lady,  that  he 
resolved  to  save  her  boy  from  the  gallows  if  possible. 
The  excitement  was  intense,  and  everybody  seemed 
willing  to  believe  that  Armstrong  killed  Metzgar. 
Lincoln  saw  that  it  would  be  well-nigh  impossible  to 
secure  an  impartial  jury  in  these  circumstances,  and 
he  said  to  Mrs.  Armstrong  :  — 

"  We  must  have  the  case  put  off  if  possible,  until 
the  excitement  dies  away." 

"And  let  my  son  lie  in  prison  all  the  while,"  Mrs. 
Armstrong  answered,  as  if  horrified  by  the  thought 
that  he  should  be  incarcerated  so  long. 

"  There  is  no  other  alternative.  Better  that  than 
to  be  condemned  and  executed  in  advance,"  Lincoln 
rejoined  calmly. 

"True,  very  true  ;  but  I'm  impatient  to  see  him  free 
again." 

"  That  is  not  strange  at  all,  but  I  am  satisfied  that 
the  case  cannot  be  conducted  so  favorably  for  him  now, 
when  the  public  mind  is  so  excited." 

"  I  understand  you  exactly,"  responded  Mrs.  Arm* 
strong,  "and  shall  agree  to  any  decision  you  make.  The 
case  is  in  your  hands,  and  you  will  conduct  it  as  you 
think  best." 


288       PIONEER  HOME   TO  IVHITE  HOUSE. 

"Another  thing  too/'  added  Lincoln,.  "  I  need  more 
time  to  unravel  the  affair.  I  want  to  produce  evidence 
that  shall  vindicate  William,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
every  reasonable  man." 

Lincoln  secured  the  postponement  of  the  trial  until 
the  following  spring ;  and  he  spent  much  time,  in 
the  interval,  in  tracing  evidence,  laboring  as  assidu- 
ously to  pay  his  old  debt  of  gratitude  as  he  would 
have  done  under  the  offer  of  a  fee  of  five  thousand 
dollars. 

The  time  for  the  trial  arrived,  and  it  drew  together  a 
crowd  of  interested  people,  nor  were  they  under  so 
much  excitement  as  they  were  when  the  case  was 
postponed.  The  "  sober  second  thought  "  had  moder- 
ated their  feelings,  and  they  were  in  a  better  frame  of 
mind  to  judge  impartially. 

The  witnesses  for  the  State  were  introduced  ;  some 
to  testify  of  Armstrong's  previous  vicious  character, 
and  others  to  relate  what  they  saw  of  the  affair  on  the 
night  of  the  murder.  His  accuser  testified  in  the 
most  positive  manner  that  he  saw  him  make  the 
dreadful  thrust  that  felled  his  victim. 

"  Could  there  be  no  mistake  in  regard  to  the  person 
who  struck  the  blow  ? "  asked  the  counsel  for  the 
defence. 

"  None  at  all :  I  am  confident  of  that,"  replied  the 
witness. 

"  What  time  in  the  evening  was  it  ? " 

"Between  ten  and  eleven  o'clock." 

"  Well,  about  how  far  between  ?  Was  it  quarter- 
past  ten  or  half-past  ten  o'clock,  or  still  later?  Be 
more  exact,  if  you  please." 


A   SUCCESSFUL  LAWYER.  289 

"  I  should  think  it  might  have  been  about  half-past 
ten  o'clock/*  answered  the  witness. 

"  And  you  are  confident  that  you  saw  the  prisoner 
at  the  bar  give  the  blow  ?  Be  particular  in  your 
testimony,  and  remember  that  you  are  under  oath  " 

"  I  am  ;  there  can  be  no  mistake  about  it." 

"Was  it  not  dark?" 

"Yes  ;  but  the  moon  was  shining  brightly." 

"Then  it  was  not  very  dark,  as  there  was  ^ 
moon  ?" 

"  No ;  the  moon  made  it  light  enough  for  me  to  see 
the  whole  affair/ ' 

"  Be  particular  on  this  point.  Do  I  understand  you 
to  say  that  the  murder  was  committed  about  half-past 
ten  o'clock,  and  that  the  moon  was  shining  brightly  at 
the  time  ? " 

"  Yes,  that  is  what  I  testify." 

"Very  well;  that  is  all." 

His  principal  accuser  was  thus  positive  in  his  testi- 
mony, and  the  sagacious  attorney  saw  enough  therein 
to  destroy  his  evidence. 

After  the  witnesses  for  the  State  had  been  called, 
the  defence  introduced  a  few,  to  show  that  young 
Armstrong  had  borne  a  better  character  than  some  of 
the  witnesses  gave  him,  and  also  that  his  accuser  had 
been  his  personal  enemy,  while  the  murdered  young 
man  was  his  personal  friend. 

The  counsel  for  the  Commonwealth  considered  that 
the  evidence  was  too  strong  against  Armstrong  to 
admit  of  a  reasonable  doubt  of  his  guilt ;  therefore,  his 
plea  was  short  and  formal. 

All  eyes  were  now  turned  to  Lincoln.     What  could 


290       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


he  say  for  the  accused,  in  the  face  of  such  testimony? 
Few  saw  any  possible  chance  for  Armstrong  to  escape : 
his  condemnation  was  sure. 

Mr.  Lincoln  rose,  while  a  deeply  impressive  stillness 
reigned  throughout  the  court-room.  The  prisoner  sat 
with  a  worried,  despairing  look,  such  as  he  had  worn 
^ver  since  his  arrest.  When  he  was  led  into  the  court- 
room, a  most  melancholy  expression  sat  upon  his  brow, 
as  if  he  were  forsaken  by  every  friend,  and  the  evidence 
presented  was  not  suited  to  produce  a  change  for  the 
better. 

His  counsel  proceeded  to  review  the  testimony,  and 
called  attention  particularly  to  the  discrepancies  in  the 
statements  of  the  principal  witness.  What  had  seemed 
to  the  multitude  as  plain,  truthful  statements  he  showed 
to  be  wholly  inconsistent  with  other  parts  of  the 
testimony,  indicating  a  plot  against  an  innocent  man. 
Then,  raising  his  clear,  full  voice  to  a  higher  key,  and 
lifting  his  long,  wiry  right  arm  above  his  head,  as  if 
about  to  annihilate  his  client's  accuser,  he  exclaimed  : 
"  And  he  testifies  that  the  moon  was  shining  brightly 
when  the  deed  was  perpetrated,  between  the  hours  of 
ten  and  eleven  o'clock,  when  the  moon  did  not  appear 
on  that  night,  as  your  Honor's  almanac  will  show,  until 
an  hour  or  more  later,  and  conseauently  the  whole  story 
is  a  fabrication." 

The  audience  were  carried  by  this  sudden  overthrow 
of  the  accuser's  testimony,  and  they  were  now  as  bitter 
against  the  principal  witness  as  they  were  before 
against  the  accused. 

Lincoln  continued  in  a  strain  of  singular  eloquence, 
portraying  the  loneliness  and  sorrow  of  the  widowed 


A   SUCCESSFUL   LAlVYElt,  29 1 

mother,  whose  husband,  long  since  gathered  to  his 
fathers,  and  his  good  companion  with  the  silver  locks, 
welcomed  a  strange  and  penniless  boy  to  their  humble 
abode,  dividing  their  scanty  store  with  him,  and, 
pausing,  and  exhibiting  much  emotion — "that  bov 
stands  before  you  now  pleading  for  the  life  of  his 
benefactor's  son  —  the  staff  of  the  widow's  declining 
years."  The  effect  was  electric  ;  and  eyes  unused  to 
weep  shed  tears  as  rain.  With  unmistakable  expres- 
sions of  honest  sympathy  around  him,  Lincoln  closed 
his  remarkable  plea  with  the  words,  "  If  justice  is  done, 
as  I  believe  it  will  be,  before  the  sun  sets,  it  will  shine 
upon  my  client  a  free  man." 

The  jury  returned  to  the  court-room,  after  thirty 
minutes  of  retirement,  with  the  verdict  of  "  Not 
Guilty."  Turning  to  his  client,  Lincoln  said,  "It  is 
not  sundown,  and  you  are  free !  " 

A  shout  of  joy  went  up  from  the  crowded  assembly; 
and  the  aged  mother,  wrho  had  retired  when  the  case 
was  given  to  the  jury,  was  brought  in  with  tears  of 
gratitude  streaming  down  her  cheeks,  to  receive  her 
acquitted  boy,  and  thank  her  noble  benefactor  for  his 
successful  effort. 

"  Where  is  Mr.  Lincoln  ?"  she  asked.  And  from  her 
saved  boy,  she  pressed  her  way  through  the  crowd  to 
him,  and,  seizing  his  hand  convulsively,  attempted  to 
express  her  gratitude,  but  utterance  was  impossible. 
Tears  only  told  how  full  her  heart  was.  Lincoln 
answered  only  with  tears  for  a  few  moments.  At 
length,  however,  controlling  his  feelings,  he  said  :  — 

"  Aunt  Hannah,  what  did  I  tell  you?  I  pray  to  God 
that  William  may  be  a  good  boy  hereafter — that  this 


292        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

lesson  may  prove  in  the  end  a  good  lesson  to  him  and 
to  all." 

Subsequently,  Lincoln  went  to  see  her  at  her  home,, 
when  she  pressed  him  to  take  pay  for  his  services. 

"Why,  Aunt  Hannah,  I  shan't  take  a  cent  of  yours 
—  never.  Anything  I  can  do  for  you,  I  will  do  willingly,, 
and  without  any  charge." 

Months  after  this,  Lincoln  heard  that  some  men  were 
trying  to  defraud  her  of  land,  and  he  wrote  to  her :  — 

"Aunt  Hannah,  they  can't  have  your  land.  Let 
them  try  it  in  the  Circuit  Court,  and  then  you  appeal 
it ;  bring  it  to  the  Supreme  Court,  and  Herndon  and  I 
will  attend  to  it  for  nothing." 

This  William  Armstrong,  whom  Lincoln  saved  from 
the  gallows,  enlisted  in  the  Union  army,  in  response  to 
Abraham  Lincoln's  first  call  for  seventy-five  thousand 
volunteers.  Two  years  later,  his  mother  wrote  to 
President  Lincoln  that  she  wanted  her  boy.  She  did 
not  speak  of  any  disability,  only  said  that  she  wanted 
him.  But  that  was  enough  for  Mr.  Lincoln,  who  had 
not  yet  fully  paid  his  old  debt  of  gratitude  to  his  early 
benefactress,  as  he  thought.  He  ordered  the  discharge 
of  her  son,  and  wrote  the  following  brief  epistle  to  her 
with  his  own  hand  :  — 

September,  1863. 

Mrs.  Hannah  Armstrong,  —  I  have  just  ordered  the  dis- 
charge of  your  boy  William,  as  you  say,  now  at  Louisville,  Ky, 

A  lawyer  was  associated  with  Lincoln  in  this  case, 
Mr.  Walker,  and  he  says  of  his  plea  :  — 

a  At  first  he  spoke  slowly,  and  carefully  reviewed 
the  whole  testimony, — picked  it  all    to  pieces,   and 


A    SUCCESSFUL  LAWYER,  293 

showed  that  the  man  had  not  received  his  wounds  at 
the  place  or  time  named  by  the  witnesses,  but  after- 
wards, and  at  the  hands  of  some  one  else  ....  He 
skilfully  untied  here  and  there  a  knot,  and  loosened 
here  and  there  a  peg,  until  fairly  getting  warmed  up, 
he  raised  himself  in  his  full  power,  and  shook  the 
arguments  of  his  opponents  from  him  as  if  they  were 
cobwebs  ....  The  last  fifteen  minutes  of  his  speech 
was  as  eloquent  as  I  ever  heard ;  and  such  the 
power  and  earnestness  with  which  he  spoke  to  that 
jury,  that  all  sat  as  if  entranced,  and  when  he  was 
through,  found  relief  in  a  gush  of  tears."  Even  one 
of  the  prosecutors  said,  "  He  took  the  jury  by  storm. 
There  were  tears  in  Mr.  Lincoln's  eyes  while  he 
spoke,  but  they  were  genuine.  His  sympathies  were 
fully  enlisted  for  the  young  man,  and  his  terrible 
sincerity  could  not  help  but  arouse  the  same  passion 
in  the  jury.  I  have  said  a  hundred  times  that  it 
was  Lincoln's  speech  that  saved  Armstrong  from  the 
gallows." 

By  this  time,  old  Mrs.  Armstrong  must  have  realized 
the  full,  deep  significance  of  the  divine  promise,  "  Cast 
thy  bread  upon  the  waters,  for  thou  shalt  find  it  after 
many  days." 

In  his  circuit  practice,  Lincoln  devoted  himself  to 
self-improvement,  by  taking  books  with  him  —  reading- 
books,  his  grammar,  arithmetic  and  Shakespeare. 
He  read  and  studied  much  when  riding.  The 
finest  passages  of  Shakespeare  were  committed 
in  these  travels  ;  and  he  would  sometimes  stop  by  the 
way,  and  recite  them  to  strangers  whom  he  met. 
Out  of  court,  during  his  absence  on  circuit  business, 


2gd       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

b*t  found  considerable  time  to  pore  over  his  books,  so 
*hat  little  of  his  time  was  lost. 

Soon  after  he  began  the  practice  of  law,  he  com- 
menced to  remit  money  to  his  poor  parents.  There 
was  a  mortgage  of  two  hundred  dollars  on  his  father's 
little  farm,  and  he  paid  it.  His  foster-brother,  John 
Johnston,  was  poor  and  needy,  and  he  assisted  him, 
also.  John  was  shiftless  and  lazy,  and  Lincoln  once 
wrote  to  him,  "  I  now  promise  you,  that,  for  every 
dollar  you  will,  between  this  and  the  first  of  next  May, 
get  for  your  own  labor,  either  in  money  or  as  your 
own  indebtedness,  I  will  then  give  you  one  other 
dollar.  By  this,  if  you  hire  yourself  at  ten  dollars  a 
month,  from  me  you  will  get  ten  more,  making 
twenty  dollars  a  month  for  your  work/'  He  visited 
his  parents,  also,  as  often  as  was  consistent  with  his 
growing  business  and  many  cares. 

In  his  early  law  practice,  he  received  five  hundred 
dollars  for  conducting  a  criminal  case  successfully. 
A  legal  friend  called  upon  him  the  next  morning,  and 
found  him  counting  his  money. 

"  Look  here,  judge,"  he  said  ;  "more  money  out  of 
this  case  than  I  ever  had  in  my  life.  If  I  had  two 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars  more,  I  would  go  directly 
and  purchase  a  quarter-section  of  land,  and  settle  it 
upon  my  old  stepmother.,, 

"  I  will  loan  you  the  required  amount,"  answered 
the  judge. 

"Agreed,"  rejoined  Mr.  Lincoln,  and  proceeded  to 
write  a  note  at  once. 

"I  would  not  use  the  money  just  as  you  have 
indicated,"  then  added  the  judge. 


A  SUCCESSFUL  LAWYER.  295 

"Why  not?" 

"  Your  stepmother  is  getting  old,  and  will  not  live 
many  years.  I  would  settle  the  property  upon  her 
for  her  use  during  her  lifetime,  to  revert  to  you  upon 
her  death." 

"  I  shall  do  no  such  thing,"  answered  Lincoln, 
decidedly.  "  It  is  a  poor  return,  at  the  best,  for  the 
good  woman's  devotion  and  fidelity  to  me,  and  there 
is  not  going  to  be  any  half  way  business  about  it." 

As  soon  as  he  could,  he  purchased  the  quarter- 
section,  and  settled  it  upon  his  stepmother. 

On  hearing  of  his  father's  serious  illness  in  January, 
185 1,  at  a  time  when  pressing  business  and  the  sick- 
ness of  his  own  wife  rendered  it  impossible  for  him  to 
leave  her,  he  wrote  a  very  touching  filial  letter, 
addressing  it  to  Johnston.  The  letter  has  the  follow- 
ing paragraph :  — 

"  You  already  know  I  desire  that  neither  father  or 
mother  shall  be  in  want  of  any  comfort,  either  in 
health  or  sickness,  while  they  live ;  and  I  feel  sure 
that  you  have  not  failed  to  use  my  name,  if  necessary, 
to  procure  a  doctor  or  any  thing  else  for  father  in  his 
present  sickness.  I  sincerely  hope  father  may  yet 
recover  his  health  ;  but,  at  all  events,  tell  him  to 
iremember  and  call  upon  and  confide  in  our  great  and 
good  and  merciful  Maker,  who  will  not  turn  away 
from  him  in  any  extremity.  He  notes  the  fall  of 
a  sparrow,  and  numbers  the  hairs  of  our  heads ;  and 
he  will  not  forget  the  dying  man  who  puts  his  trust  in 
him.  Say  to  him,  that,  if  we  could  meet  now,  it  is 
doubtful  whether  it  would  not  be  more  painful  than 
pleasant ;  but  that,  if  it  be  his  lot  to  go  now,  he  will 


20       PIONEER   HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 

soon  have  a  joyous  meeting  with  loved  ones  gone 
before,  and  where  the  rest  of  us,  through  the  help  o* 
God,  hope  ere  long  to  join  them." 

That  the  reader  may  know  we  have  not  spoken 
with  partiality  of  Mr.  Lincoln  as  a  lawyer,  the  follow- 
ing tribute  of  two  of  the  most  distinguished  jurists  of 
his  day,  spoken  after  his  tragic  death,  will  prove. 

Judge  David  Davis  said  :  "  In  all  the  elements  that 
constitute  the  great  lawyer  he  had  few  equals.  The 
framework  of  his  mental  and  moral  being  was 
honesty.  He  never  took  from  a  client,  even  when  the 
cause  was  gained,  more  than  he  thought  the  service 
was  worth  and  the  client  could  reasonably  afford 
to  pay.     He  was  loved  by  his  brethren  of  the  bar." 

Judge  Drummond  said  :  "  With  a  probity  of  charac- 
ter known  to  all,  with  an  intuitive  insight  into  the 
human  heart,  with  a  clearness  of  statement  which  was 
in  itself  an  argument,  with  uncommon  power  and 
felicity  of  illustration,  —  often,  it  is  true,  of  a  plain  and 
homely  kind, — and  with  that  sincerity  and  earnest- 
ness of  manner,  which  carried  conviction,  he  was 
one  of  the  most  successful  lawyers  in  the  State," 


CHAPTER    XXII 

THE   RISING   STATESMAN. 

|R  LINCOLN  was  elected  to  Congress  in 
1846.  He  was  brought  forward  in  a  meet 
ing  to  nominate  delegates  to  a  Congressional 
Convention  in  1844,  but  Col.  Baker  received 
the  endorsement  of  the  convention.  Mr.  Lincoln, 
however,  was  chosen  one  of  the  delegates  to  the 
district  convention,  whereupon  he  wrote  to  his  old 
friend  Speed,  in  a  vein  of  humor,  "  The  meeting  ap- 
pointed me  one  of  the  delegates,  so  that  in  getting  Baker 
the  nomination  I  shall  be  'fixed '  a  good  deal  like  the 
fellow  who  is  made  groomsman  to  the  man  who  has 
4  cut  him  out/  and  is  marrying  his  own  dear  gal." 

Henry  Clay,  his  favorite  statesman,  was  the  Whig 
candidate  for  President  that  year ;  and  Mr.  Lincoln 
entered  into  the  canvass  with  all  his  heart,  making 
numerous  speeches,  and  winning  golden  opinions.  He 
was  chosen  a  presidential  elector,  a  merited  honor. 

One  day  he  was  coming  down  the  steps  of  the 
State  House,  when  he  met  an  old  client,  whose  note 
for  services  he  held. 

"  Hallo,  Cogdal !  "  Lincoln  exclaimed,  heartily  ex- 
tending his  hand :  "  you  have  been  very  unfortunate,  I 


20>Z       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

hear."  Cogdal  had  been  blown  up  by  an  accidental 
discharge  of  powder,  and  lost  one  hand  by  the  ca- 
lamity. 

"  Yes,  rather  unfortunate ;  but  it  might  have  been 
worse,"  answered  Cogdal. 

"  Well,  that  is  a  philosophical  way  of  looking  at  it, 
certainly,"  continued  Lincoln.  "  But  how  are  you 
getting  along  in  your  business  ?  " 

"  Badly  enough.  I  am  not  only  broken  up  in  my 
business,  but  crippled  for  life  also." 

"  I  am  sorry  for  you,  very  sorry  indeed,"  replied 
Lincoln  with  profound  sympathy. 

"  I  have  been  thinking  about  that  note  of  yours," 
Cogdal  added,  in  a  despairing  tone. 

"  Well,  "  responded  Lincoln,  in  a  half -laughing  way, 
"you  need  n't  think  any  more  about  it,"  at  the  same 
time  taking  the  note  from  his  pocket-book  and  handing 
it  to  him. 

Cogdal  protested  against  taking  the  note,  and  ex- 
pressed the  hope  that  some  day  he  might  be  able  to 
pay  it.  But  Lincoln  insisted,  adding,  "  If  you  had  the 
money  I  would  not  take  it,"  and  he  hurried  away. 

We  said  that  he  was  elected  to  Congress  in  1846. 
He  was  elected  too,  by  a  surprisingly  large  majority. 
Henry  Clay  received  but  nine  hundred  and  fourteen 
majority  in  the  district  in  1844 ;  but  Lincoln's  majority 
T.vas  one  thousand  five  hundred  and  eleven.  Many 
voted  for  him  who  were  not  Whigs,  his  honesty  and 
peculiar  fitness  for  the  office  winning  their  votes.  H^ 
took  his  seat  in  the  National  House  of  Representa 
tives,  Dec.  6,  1847  \  and  the  fact  that  he  was  the  only 
Whig    member   from    Illinois   contributed    somewhat 


THE  RISING   STATESMAN.  299 

to  his  popularity.  At  the  same  session  Stephen  A. 
Douglas  took  his  seat  in  the  United  States  Senate  — 
Democratic  senator  from  Illinois.  He  was  "the 
youngest  and  shortest  member  of  the  senate,"  while 
Lincoln  was  the  "  youngest  and  longest  member  of  the 
house  ;"soa  waggish  associate  claimed. 

The  country  was  thoroughly  excited,  at  that  time, 
upon  the  questions  of  "  the  Mexican  war "  and  the 
"  admission  of  Texas  as  a  slave  State."  The  war  with 
Mexico  was  unjustly  waged  in  the  interests  of  slavery, 
and  the  South  was  looking  to  Texas  for  the  extension 
of  their  inhuman  institution.  Lincoln  at  once  arrayed 
himself  against  these  unrighteous  measures,  and  he 
delivered  a  speech  which  was  acknowledged  to  be  the 
best  that  was  delivered  against  them  during  the  ses- 
sion. 

The  anti-slavery  conflict  in  Congress  was  hot  and 
bitter  during  the  two  years  he  served  in  the  House. 
Those  mighty  champions  of  Liberty,  John  Quincy 
Adams  of  Massachusetts,  and  Joshua  R.  Giddings,  of 
Ohio,  were  members ;  and  Lincoln  found  himself  fight- 
ing for  his  principles  by  their  side.  He  assailed  slavery 
as  "  unjust  and  cruel ;"  and  did  not  hesitate  to  declare 
that  God  would  visit  the  land  in  terrible  retribution,  if 
the  American  people  continued  to  legislate  and  govern 
in  the  interests  of  human  bondage.  He  voted  forty- 
two  times,  in  one  way  and  another,  for  that  famous 
anti-slavery  measure  —  "The  Wilmot  Proviso." 

He  became  popular  with  both  Whigs  and  Democrats, 
by  reason  of  his  genial  spirit,  fairness,  and  sincerity  in 
debate,  his  quick-witted  ability  in  controversy,  and  his 
transparency  and  uprightness  of  character. 


300       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

He  declined  re-election  in  1848,  and  again  in  1850, 
preferring  to  be  at  home  with  his  family,  and  follow  his 
chosen  profession. 

His  life  in  Washington  forced  upon  his  conviction 
anew,  that  he  must  give  more  attention  to  intellectual 
improvement.  He  saw  and  felt  that  the  distance 
between  himself  and  many  of  his  congressional  asso- 
ciates, was  great  indeed ;  and  he  resolved  to  lessen  it.  He 
devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  English  and  American 
literature  with  the  earnest  application  of  early  days.  He 
studied  language  and  style  by  reading  the  best  authors. 
In  short,  he  took  a  new  departure  in  mental  progress, 
and  really  accomplished  what  elevated  his  speeches  and 
composition  the  rest  of  his  life.  Being  one  who  ac- 
cepted the  old  maxim  fully,  "  Never  too  old  to  learn," 
he  not  only  made  the  most  of  himself  possible  after  he 
was  forty  years  of  age  ;  but  he  made  more  of  himself 
within  a  few  years,  than  his  most  partial  friends  ever 
anticipated. 

Until  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  in  1854, 
and  the  attempt  to  force  slavery  upon  Kansas,  Lincoln 
remained  in  comparative  retirement,  devoting  himself 
to  his  family  and  profession.  Occasionally  some  pro- 
slavery  demonstration  by  his  old  friend  and  political 
antagonist,  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  called  him  out,  for  he 
was  ever  ready  to  pursue  him  in  public  debate  or  polit- 
ical action.  He  made  some  speeches  in  the  canvass 
for  General  Taylor,  Whig  candidate  for  president,  in 
1848,  and  also  for  General  Scott,  Whig  candidate  for 
president,  in  1852.  In  the  same  year,  also,  he  delivered 
a  eulogy  upon  Henry  Clay  in  the  State  Capitol.  He 
made  some  addresses  on  Temperance,  also.     He  had 


THE   RISING   STATESMAN,  301 

been  accustomed  to  make  "little  speeches"  upon  Tem- 
perance, as  he  called  them,  from  the  time  he  entertained 
his  companions  on  the  stumps  of  Indiana.  At  the 
time  he  entered  upon  the  legal  profession,  the  temper- 
ance cause  was  demanding  attention;  and  he  had 
occasional  calls  for  addresses  in  this  line.  In  1854  he 
joined  the  Sons  of  Temperance,  believing  that  the 
Order  was  accomplishing  much  good  in  the  West  as 
well  as  in  the  East.  He  did  not  hesitate  to  lend  both 
example  and  voice  against  the  drink  customs. 

But  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  in  1854 
aroused  him  by  its  base  injustice  and  political  chicanery. 
A  solemn  covenant,  made  in  1820,  to  shut  slavery  out  of 
the  northwest,  was  wantonly  broken,  that  slavery  might 
have  a  foothold  in  Kansas  and  Nebraska ;  and  his  old 
associate  and  antagonist,  Douglas,  was  the  author  of  it. 
The  deed  aroused  his  whole  stalwart  nature  against  the 
arch  democrat,  who  devised  and  prosecuted  the  dia- 
bolical scheme ;  and  he  took  the  field  of  political 
controversy,  stronger  and  more  earnest  than  ever. 

Mr.  Douglas  delivered  a  speech  in  Springfield,  while 
the  State  Fair  was  in  progress,  and  thousands  of  people 
were  there.  Mn  Lincoln  heard  it,  and  replied  to  it,  in 
the  same  place,  on  the  following  day.  Listeners  de- 
clared it  to  be  the  grandest  effort  of  his  life,  and  that 
it  completely  destroyed  the  political  foundation  on 
which  Douglas  stood.  His  speech  was  over  three  hours 
long.     The  "  Springfield  Journal  "  said  : 

"  He  quivered  with  feeling  and  emotion.  The  whole 
house  was  as  still  as  death.  He  attacked  the  bill  (the 
Kansas-Nebraska  bill,  of  which  Douglas  was  the  author) 
with  unusual  warmth  and  energy,  and  all  felt  that  a 


-02        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

man  of  strength  was  its  enemy ;  and  that  he  intended 
to  blast  it  if  he  could  by  strong  and  manly  efforts.  He 
was  most  successful;  and  the  house  approved  the 
glorious  triumph  of  truth  by  loud  and  long-continued 
huzzas.  Women  waved  their  white  handkerchiefs  in 
token  of  their  silent  but  heartfelt  consent.  Every 
man  felt  that  the  speech  was  unanswerable — that  no 
numan  power  could  overthrow  it,  or  trample  it  under 
foot." 

Mr.  Lincoln  followed  Douglas  to  Peoria  and  other 
places,  and  was  equally  triumphant  in  his  replies  to 
the  advocate  of  slavery.  The  result  was  a  complete 
political  revolution  in  the  state.  The  Democrats  had 
been  in  power  in  Illinois,  ever  since  their  party  was 
organized.  But  now  their  power  was  broken,  and  a 
Whig  legislature  was  elected,  Lincoln  being  among  its 
members.  A  press  of  business,  however,  compelled 
him  to  resign  before  taking  his  seat.  Many  Democrats 
voted  with  the  Whigs,  because  they  were  opposed  to 
forcing  slavery  upon  Kansas  and  Nebraska. 

This  new  Whig  Legislature  had  to  elect  a  United 
States  Senator :  and  Mr.  Lincoln  was  the  Whig  candi- 
date ;  Lyman  Trumbull  the  anti-Kansas-Nebraska  Dem- 
ocratic candidate  ;  and  General  James  Shields,  the 
Douglas  party  candidate.  After  several  undecisive 
ballots,  the  Democrats  dropped  Gen.  Shields  and 
took  up  Governor  Matheson,  who  had  not  committed 
himself  to  either  side  of  the  great  question ;  and 
Matheson  came  within  three  votes  of  an  election.  At 
this  juncture,  an  effort  was  made  to  unite  the  friends 
of  Lincoln  and  Trumbull  upon  one  of  them.  Here 
the  remarkable  magnanimity  of  Lincoln's  nature  came 


THE   RISING   STATESMAN.  303 


to  the  rescue,  showing  how  much  more  he  cared 
for  the  principle  at  issue  than  he  did  for  himself, 

"Withdraw  my  name  and  support  Trumbull/' 
urged  Lincoln;  "we  shall  be  whipped  if  you  don't." 

"Never;  never,"  protested  one  and  another. 

"  Four  votes  only  will  make  Matheson  senator,  and 
we  must  not  risk  another  ballot/'  urged  Lincoln,  with 
still  more  earnestness. 

"Impossible/'  answered  one.  "We  cannot  do  it," 
said  another. 

Lincoln  grew  determined  over  the  danger  of  losing 
in  the  contest,  and  straightening  himself  up  to  his 
full  height,  as  he  was  wont  under  great  emotion  :  — 

"  It  must  be  done,"  he  shouted. 

The  Whigs  yielded,  though  several  of  them  wept  at 
the  necessity ;  and  the  united  effort  made  Trumbull 
senator.  But,  to  the  Whigs  of  Illinois,  Lincoln  never 
appeared  so  truly  great,  as  he  did  after  that  act 
of  superior  magnanimity.  No  man  in  the  State 
or  country  rejoiced  more  heartily  over  the  triumph 
than  Mr.  Lincoln. 

In  1856,  the  Republican  party  of  Illinois  was  organ- 
ized at  Bloomington,  and  the  foremost  man  in  its 
organization  was  Abraham  Lincoln.  With  one  of  his 
ablest  speeches,  on  that  occasion,  he  fired  all  hearts. 
Mr.  Scripps  says :  "  Never  was  an  audience  more 
completely  electrified  by  human  eloquence.  Again 
and  again  during  the  progress  of  its  delivery,  they 
sprang  to  their  feet  and  upon  the  benches,  and 
testified  by  long  continued  shouts  and  the  waving  of 
hats,  how  deeply  the  speaker  had  wrought  upon  theii 
minds  and  hearts/' 


304       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


From  the  organization  of  the  Republican  party,  Mr 
Lincoln  was  not  only  the  first  Republican  in  Illinois* 
but  also  in  all  the  Western  States ;  and  a  month  later, 
at  the  National  Republican  convention  to  nominate  a 
candidate  for  President,  his  name  was  brought 
forward  for  the  Vice-Presidency.  On  the  informal 
ballot  he  received  one  hundred  and  ten  votes,  and 
Mr.  Dayton  two  hundred  and  fifty-nine  This  com* 
plimentary  vote  was  secured  without  Mr.  Lincoln's 
knowledge.  He  was  attending  court  at  Urbana  in 
his  own  State.  The  newspaper  report  that  reached 
Urbana  said,  "  Lincoln  received  one  hundred  and  ten 
votes." 

"  Is  that  our  Lincoln  !  "  inquired  one  of  the  lawyers. 

"  Of  course,  it  is,"  replied  another.  And  turning 
to  Mr.  Lincoln,  who  made  his  appearance  just  then, 
he  remarked  :  — 

"  I  congratulate  you  upon  so  handsome  a  vote  for 
Vice-President." 

"  Me ! "  exclaimed  Lincoln,  who  had  already  read 
the  paper.     "  Have  you  any  idea  that  means  me  ? " 

"  Certainly,  I  have  no  idea  that  it  means  anybody 
else." 

"  Well,  you  were  never  more  mistaken  in  your  life," 
protested  Mr.  Lincoln  ;  "  it  can't  mean  me.  It  must 
be  the  great  Lincoln  from  Massachusetts." 

He  utterly  refused  to  believe  the  newspaper  report 
Until  he  read  a  full  account  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
convention.  The  humble  estimate  he  put  upon  his 
own  abilities  and  influence,  and  the  fact  that  he  had 
indulged  no  aspirations  for  the  office,  is  sufficient 
explanation  of  the  affair. 


THE   RISING   STATESMAN.  305 

He  took  part  in  the  campaign  that  followed  for 
Fremont  and  Dayton,  striking  some  telling  blows  for 
liberty.  The  opposition  found  a  powerful  antagonist 
in  him,  and  sometimes  resorted  to  mean  expedients  to 
show  their  hostility.  At  a  meeting  at  Charleston,  Coles 
County,  a  Democrat  interrupted  him  by  saying,  "Mr. 
Lincoln,  is  it  true  that  you  entered  this  State  bare- 
footed, driving  a  yoke  of  oxen  ?  " 

Mr.  Lincoln  paused  a  few  moments,  and  thea 
answered,  "  I  think  I  can  prove  the  fact  by  at  least  a 
dozen  men  in  the  crowd,  any  one  of  whom  is  more 
respectable  than  my  questioner.,, 

Then  he  branched  off  upon  the  helps  of  a  free  gov- 
ernment to  a  poor  boy,  and  "the  curse  of  Slavery  to 
the  white  man,  wherever  it  existed,"  speaking,  in 
a  strain  of  thrilling  eloquence,  and  closing  his  response 
with  the  following  inspiring  sentence,  that  thoroughly 
aroused  the  assembly  :  — 

"  Yes,  we  will  speak  for  freedom  and  against 
slavery,  as  long  as  the  Constitution  of  our  country 
guarantees  free  speech,  until  everywhere  on  this  wide 
land,  the  sun  shall  shine  and  the  rain  shall  fall  and  the 
wind  shall  blow  upon  no  man  who  goes  forth  tc 
unrequited  toi'  " 

Mr.  Lincoln  had  prophesied,  not  only  bloodshed  in 
Kansas,  but  also  a  bloody  contest  between  the  North 
and  Soath,  in  consequence  of  the  repeal  of  the 
Missouri  Compromise,  and  the  Kansas-Nebraska  out- 
rage. Already  the  first  prophecy  was  fulfilled,  and 
"Border  Ruffians"  were  burning  houses,  shooting 
Free-State  men,  and  sacking  villages,  to  frighten 
freedom  out  of  Kansas.       Douglas  saw  that  political 


3O0       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

death  awaited  him  in  Illinois  if  he  pursued  his 
Kansas-Nebraska  measure ;  and,  all  at  once  he  changed 
front,  and  voted  with  the  Republicans  in  Congress 
against  the  very  measure  his  own  political  recklessness 
inaugurated.  His  senatorial  term  was  drawing  to 
a  close,  and  now  he  sought  a  re-election  by  appealing 
to  Republicans  for  support.  Those  of  Illinois  were 
too  familiar  with  his  duplicity  to  believe  he  was 
honest,  and  refused  to  support  him.  In  other  States, 
where  his  political  character  was  not  so  well  under- 
stood, there  were  prominent  Republicans  who  asked 
their  brethren  of  Illinois  to  return  him  to  the 
United  States  Senate. 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  never  bolder,  more  earnest  and 
stronger,  than  he  was  in  this  campaign.  The  Re- 
publican  State  convention  met  at  Springfield  on  the 
sixteenth  day  of  June  ;  and  it  was  scarcely  organized 
when  a  banner  was  borne  into  the  hall,  on  which  was 
inscribed,  "Cook  County  for  Abraham  Lincoln." 
The  sight  of  it  seemed  to  craze  the  whole  assembly. 
They  sprang  to  their  feet,  jumped  upon  the  benches, 
swung  their  hats,  shouted,  cheered  and  gave  them- 
selves up  to  demonstrations  of  delight  for  several 
minutes.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  unanimously  nominated ; 
and,  in  the  evening,  delivered  before  the  convention 
his  famous  speech,  known  in  history  as  "The  House- 
divided-against-itself  Speech/'  This  title  was  derived 
from  a  single  paragraph  at  the  opening  of  the  speech, 
as  follows :  — 

"A  house  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand.  I 
believe  this  government  cannot  endure  permanently, 
half  slave  and  half  free.     I  do  not  expect  the  Union  to 


THE  RISING  STATESMAN.  30? 

oe  dissolved,  —  I  do  not  expect  the  house  to  fall ;  but  I 
do  expect  it  will  cease  to  be  divided.  It  will  become 
all  one  thing,  or  all  the  other."  Late  in  the  after- 
noon of  that  day,  Mr.  Lincoln  went  over  to  his  office, 
*rith  his  carefully  prepared  speech  in  his  pocket ;  and, 
locking  the  door  behind  him,  he  said  to  his  partner, 
Mr.  Herndon :  — 

"  Let  me  read  you  a  paragraph  of  my  speech."  He 
read  the  foregoing  extract,  wMch  was  a  part  of  the 
first  paragraph. 

"  How  do  you  like  it?"  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln,  before 
Herndon  had  time  to  express  his  surprise.  "  What  dc 
you  think  of  it  ? " 

"I  think  it  is  true,"  replied  Mr.  Herndon,  "but  is  ;<. 
entirely  politic  to  read  or  speak  it  just  as  it  is 
written  ? " 

"  That  makes  no  difference,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln. 
Mr.  Herndon  was  still  more  surprised.  "  Radical "  as  he 
was,  Lincoln  was  in  advance  of  him. 

"  That  expression  is  a  truth  of  all  human  experience, 
—  *  a  house  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand/  "  added 
Mr.  Lincoln  with  emphasis.  "The  proposition  is 
indisputably  true,  and  has  been  true  for  more  than 
six  thousand  years  ;  a  id  ■ —  I  will  deliver  it  as  written 

....  I  would  rather  be  defeated  with  this  expres- 
sion in  the  speech,  than  be  victorious  without  it.9* 

An  hour  before  the  address  was  to  be  delivered  in 
the  Representatives'  Hall,  a  dozen  of  his  friends  assem- 
bled in  the  library  room,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  read  to  them 
several  paragraphs  of  his  speech  including  the  extract 
quoted. 

"  What  do  you  think  oi  it  ? "  he  asked 


$08       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

"  Fifty  years  in  advance  of  public  opinion,"  answered 
one  leader  almost  angrily. 

"  Very  unwise,"  replied  another. 

"  It  will  kill  the  Republican  party,"  said  a  third. 

"  And  you  too,  Lincoln,"  said  a  fourth. 

"  Nothing  could  be  more  unwise  ;  it  will  certainly 
defeat  your  election  ;  "  added  a  fifth. 

And  so  the  criticisms  fell  fast  from  nearly  every 
tongue.  Every  one,  except  Mr.  Herndon,  condemned 
the  extract  in  question.  He  sprang  to  his  feet  after 
all  had  delivered  themselves  freely,  and  said  : —  "  Lin- 
coln, deliver  it  just  as  it  reads." 

Mr.  Lincoln  sat  in  silence  for  a  moment,  then,  rising 
from  his  seat,  he  walked  backwards  and  forwards  a  few 
moments  longer.  Suddenly  stopping  and  facing  the 
company,  he  said  :  — 

"  Friends,  I  have  thought  about  this  matter  a  great 
deal,  have  weighed  the  question  well  from  all  corners, 
and  am  thoroughly  convinced  the  time  has  come  when 
it  should  be  uttered ;  and  if  it  must  be  that  I  must  go 
down  because  of  this  speech,  then  let  me  go  down  linked 
to  truth  —  die  in  the  advocacy  of  what  is  right  and  just" 

He  delivered  the  speech  just  as  he  had  prepared  it 
and  great,  indeed,  was  the  excitement  occasioned 
thereby.  Many  of  his  warmest  friends  were  provoked 
by  his  "unwisdom." 

"  A  fool's  speech,"  cried  one. 

"Wholly  inappropriate  !  "  cried  another. 

"  That  foolish  speech  of  yours  will  kill  you,  Lincoln/* 
remarked  Dr.  Loring.  "  I  wish  it  was  wiped  out  o\ 
existence  ;  don't  you  wish  so  now  ? " 

"  Well,  doctor,"  replied  Mr.   Lincoln,  "  if  I  had  to 


THE  RISING  STATESMAN.  309 

draw  a  pen  across,  and  erase  my  whole  life  from  exis- 
tence, and  had  one  poor  gift  or  choice  left,  as  to  what 
I  should  save  from  the  wreck,  I  should  choose  that 
speech,  and  leave  it  to  the  world  unerased." 

More  than  a  year  afterwards,  he  was  dining  with  a 
party  of  friends  at  Bloomington,  when  that  speech 
became  the  theme  of  discussion,  and  every  person 
present  declared  it  was  "a  great  mistake." 

"  Gentlemen,"  replied  Mr.  Lincoln,  "  you  may  think 
that  speech  was  a  mistake ;  but  I  never  have  believed 
it  was,  and  you  will  see  the  day  when  you  will  consider 
it  the  wisest  thing  I  ever  said." 

His  prophecy  was  completely  fulfilled.  The  fact 
was,  Mr,  Lincoln  was  led  "in  a  way  that  he  knew 
not."  A  higher  intelligence  than  mere  human  sagac- 
ity guided  him  in  the  right.  That  speech  was  one 
of  the  most  marvellous  productions  in  American  annals, 
and  it  not  only  gave  the  keynote  to  his  great  sena- 
torial contest  with  Mr.  Douglas,  but  it  settled  the 
character  and  issue  of  the  next  presidential  election, 
and  finally  sealed  the  doom  of  slavery  in  this  country. 

After  the  delivery  of  this  speech,  Mr.  Lincoln 
challenged  Mr.  Douglas  to  joint  debates  throughout 
the  canvas.  The  latter  accepted  the  challenge  so  far 
as  to  arrange  for  debates  with  the  former  in  seven  im- 
portant places  of  the  state.  Mr.  Douglas  conducted 
his  part  of  the  affair  with  great  pomp  and  noise, 
proceeding  to  his  appointments  on  a  chartered  train 
accompanied  with  a  band  of  music,  and  artillery  to  fire 
salutes,  at  a  cost  of  fifty  thousand  dollars.  On  the 
other  hand,  Mr.  Lincoln  pursued  his  usual  quiet,  unos- 
tentatious and  honest  way ;   ye.  he  won  the  victory 


5IO       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


every  time.  "  To  say  that  he  was  the  victor,  morally 
and  intellectually,  is  simply  to  record  the  judgment  of 
the  world."  "  In  this  canvass  he  earned  a  reputation 
as  a  popular  debater  second  to  that  of  no  man  in 
America  —  certainly  not  second  to  that  of  his  famous 
antagonist."  At  the  close  of  one  of  his  debates  with 
Mr.  Douglas,  even  after  the  latter  had  occupied  thirty 
minutes  in  closing  the  discussion,  the  assembly  was 
so  thoroughly  "  enthused  "  by  Mr.  Lincoln's  victorious 
effort,  that  they  seized  him,  in  their  exuberance  of  joy, 
and  bore  him  out  of  the  hall  to  the  hotel  upon  their 
shoulders,  amidst  cheers  and  shouts  that  made  the 
welkin  ring.  In  the  popular  vote  he  received  a  ma- 
jority of  four  thousand  and  eighty-five  over  Mr.  Doug 
las  ;  but  owing  to  the  unfair  apportionment  of  the  legis- 
lative districts,  Mr.  Douglas  was  returned  to  the  United 
States  Senate. 

In  one  of  these  debates  he  paid  one  of  the  most 
eloquent  tributes  to  the  "  Declaration  of  Independence" 
(after  having  enunciated  its  principles)  that  ever  fell 
from  human  lips  ;  and  he  closed  with  these  memo- 
rable words : 

"  You  may  do  anything  with  me  you  choose,  if  you 
will  but  heed  these  sacred  principles.  You  may  not 
only  defeat  me  for  the  senate,  but  you  may  take  me 
and  put  me  to  death.  While  pretending  no  indifference 
to  earthly  honors,  I  do  claim  to  be  actuated  in  this  con- 
test by  something  higher  than  an  anxiety  for  office.  I 
charge  you  to  drop  every  paltry  and  insignificant  thought 
for  any  man's  success.  It  is  nothing  ;  I  am  nothing ; 
Judge  Douglas  is  nothing.     But  do  not  destroy  that 

IMMORTAL  EMBLEM  OF  HUMANITY, THE  DECLARA- 
TION of  American  Independence." 


CHAPTER   XXIII. 
GOING    UP    HIGHER. 

JHE  Republican  State  Convention  of  Illinois 
met  at  Decatur,  May  9,  i860,  in  a  "Wig- 
wam "  erected  for  the  purpose.  Directly- 
after  the  convention  was  organized,  Governor 
Oglesby,  the  chairman,  arose,  and  said,  "  I  am  informed 
that  a  distinguished  citizen  of  Illinois,  and  one  whom 
Illinois  will  ever  delight  to  honor,  is  present,  and  I 
wish  to  move  that  this  body  invite  him  to  a  seat  on  the 
stand/'  After  a  pause,  as  if  to  awaken  curiosity,  he 
called  out  the  name  in  a  much  louder  voice,  Abraham 
Lincoln.  Such  a  round  of  applause,  cheer  upon  cheer, 
followed  the  announcement,  as  shook  every  board  and 
joist  of  the  wigwam.  A  rush,  too,  was  mr.de  for  the 
gentleman,  who  stood  near  the  door,  and  he  was  act- 
ually taken  up  and  borne  through  the  dense  crowd  to 
the  platform.  The  cheering  was  like  the  roar  of  the 
sea.  Hats  were  thrown  up  by  the  Chicago  delegation, 
as  if  hats  were  no  longer  useful. 

The  convention  proceeded  to  business,  and  was  fairly 
under  way,  when  the  chairman  interrupted  by  saying: 
"There  is  an  old  Democrat  outside,  I  understand 
who  has  something  to  present  to  this  convention." 


312       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Receive  it!  receive  it!"  responded  several. 

"What  is  it  ?  what  is  it?"  cried  out  others. 

"  Let  us  have  it,"  shouted  another. 

The  convention  voted  to  receive  the  Democrat,  and 
in  walked  Mr.  Lincoln's  old  friend,  John  Hanks,  who 
helped  him  to  split  the  rails  for  his  father's  fifteen  acre 
lot ;  the  same  Hanks  who  went  with  him  to  New 
Orleans  for  Offutt,  and  enlisted  with  him  in  the  Black 
Hawk  War.  John  bore  on  his  shoulders  two  rails,  from 
the  lot  he  and  Abe  split,  surmounted  with  a  banner 
with  this  inscription  :  — 

"Two  Rails 

From  a  Lot  Made  by  Abraham  Lincoln  and  John  Hanks, 

in  the  Sangamon  Bottom,  in  the  Year  1830." 

Wild,  tumultuous  applause  greeted  the  rails,  and  the 
scene  became  simply  tempestuous  and  bewildering. 
The  tumult  subsided  only  to  make  way  for  another. 

"  A  speech ! "  "  Let's  hear  the  rail-splitter  !•"  "  A 
speech!"  "Old  Abe  must  show  his  hand!"  These 
and  other  demands  were  made  in  one  incessant  noisy 
clamor,  lasting  several  minutes,  until  Mr.  Lincoln  arose, 
confused,  brushing,  yet  smiling,  and  remarked,  — 

"  Gentlemen,  I  suppose  you  want  to  know  something 
about  those  things  (pointing  to  the  rails).  Well,  the 
truth  is,  John  Hanks  and  I  did  make  rails  in  the  San- 
gamon Bottom.  I  don't  know  whether  we  made  those 
rails  or  not ;  the  fact  is,  I  don't  think  they  are  a  credit 
to  the  makers.  But  I  do  know  this  :  I  made  rai  \  then, 
and  I  think  I  could  make  better  ones  than  thes^  now." 

Another  storm  of  applause  shook  the  wigwam  ^or 
several   minutes ;    and  was   followed  by  a   resolute:* 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  313 

jeclaring  "  Abraham  Lincoln  to  be  the  first  choice  of 
the  Republican  party  of  Illinois  for  the  Presidency." 
The  resolution  was  carried  unanimously,  amidst  the 
wildest  demonstrations. 

Five  thousand  people  attended  this  convention, 
among  them  many  Democrats  who  were  friends  of 
Lincoln.  Other  Democrats  were  there,  who  were  not 
a  little  provoked  at  the  course  of  John  Hanks  and 
others  of  their  party.  One  of  them  accosted  Mr.  Lin- 
coln, after  the  adjournment  :  — 

"And  so  you're  Abe  Lincoln?" 

"That's  my  name,  sir,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"They  say  you're  a  self-made  man." 

"  Well,  yes  ;  what  there  is  of  me  is  self-made,"  replied 
Mr.  Lincoln. 

"Wall,"  added  the  Democrat,  after  surveying  him 
from  head  to  foot,  "  all  I've  got  to  say  is,  that  it  was  a 
very  bad  job." 

It  should  be  said  that,  after  Mr.  Lincoln's  senatorial 
contest  with  Mr.  Douglas,  particularly  in  1859,  he 
spoke  by  invitation  in  Kansas,  Ohio,  New  York,  and 
several  of  the  New  England  States.  His  speeches 
were  pronounced  masterly.  Cooper  Institute  was 
thronged  to  hear  him  in  New  York  city,  and  he  was 
introduced  by  the  poet  Bryant.  The  next  morning, 
the  Tribune  said,  "  No  man  ever  before  made  such  an 
impression  on  his  first  appeal  to  a  New  York  audience." 

While  in  New  York,  two  incidents  transpired,  which 
show  much  of  the  man.  He  met  an  old  acquaintance 
from  Illinois  in  a  mercantile  establishment.  "  How 
jiave  you  fared  since  you  left  Illinois  ?"  inquired  Mrr 
Lincoln, 


314       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  I  have  made  a  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  lost 
it  all.     And  how  is  it  with  you,  Mr.  Lincoln  ?" 

"  Oh,  very  well,"  Mr.  Lincoln  replied  ;  "  I  have  the 
cottage  at  Springfield,  and  about  eight  thousand  dollars 
in  money.  If  they  make  me  vice-president  with  Seward, 
as  some  say  they  will,  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  increase 
it  to  twenty  thousand  ;  and  that  is  as  much  as  any  man 
ought  to  want." 

He  stopped  in  New  York  over  Sunday,  and  strolled 
alone  into  the  Sabbath  School  of  the  Five  Points  Mis- 
sion, interested  to  learn  what  could  be  done  for  the 
street  children  of  the  city.  The  superintendent  was 
impressed  by  the  appearance  of  the  visitor,  and  invited 
him  to  address  the  girls  and  boys.  Without  hesitation, 
he  consented,  and  immediately  began  a  little  speech 
that  completely  captivated  his  young  listeners.  Sev- 
eral times  he  essayed  to  stop,  but  his  listeners  cried 
out,  "Go  on,  go  on,  sir."  "  Do  go  on."  It  was  an 
unusual  address,  and  charmed  both  teacher  and  pupil 
alike.  When  he  was  about  to  depart,  the  superintend- 
ent said  : 

"  Pardon  me  ;  may  I  have  the  pleasure  of  knowing 
who  my  visitor  is  ? " 

"  Abraham  Lincoln  of  Illinois,"  he  replied. 

He  spoke  at  Norwich,  Conn.,  and  subsequently  Dr. 
Gulliver  published  the  following  instructive  and  inter- 
esting account  of  his  interview  with  him,  on  the  next 
morning  after  listening  to  him  :  — 

"The  next  morning  I  met  him  at  the  railroad 
station,  where  he  was  conversing  with  our  Mayor, 
every  few  minutes  looking  up  the  track  and  inquir- 
ing, half   impatiently  and  half  quizzically,    '  Where  's 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  315 

that  "wagon"  of  yours?  Why  don't  the  "wagon" 
come  along  ? '  On  being  introduced  to  him,  he  fixed 
his  eyes  upon  me,  and  said :  '  I  have  seen  you  before, 
sir  ! '  ' 1  think  not/  I  replied  :  'you  must  mistake  me 
for  some  other  person/  'No,  I  don't;  I  saw  you  at 
the  Town  Hall,  last  evening.'  'Is  it  possible,  Mr. 
Lincoln,  that  you  could  observe  individuals  so  closely 
in  such  a  crowd  ? '  '  Oh,  yes  ! '  he  replied,  laughing  ; 
•  that  is  my  way.  I  don't  forget  faces.  Were  you 
not  there?'  'I  was,  sir,  and  I  was  well  paid  for 
going ;  ■  adding,  somewhat  in  the  vein  of  pleasantry  he 
had  started,  '  I  consider  it  one  of  the  most  extraordi 
nary  speeches  I  ever  heard.' 

"As  we  entered  the  cars,  he  beckoned  me  to  take 
a  seat  with  him,  and  said,  in  a  most  agreeably  frank 
way,  'Were  you  sincere  in  what  you  said  about  my 
speech  just  now  ?' 

"  '  I  meant  every  word  of  it,  Mr.  Lincoln.  Why,  an 
old  dyed-in-the-wool  Democrat,  who  sat  near  me, 
applauded  you  repeatedly,  and  when  rallied  upon  his 
conversion  to  sound  principles,  answered :  '  I  don't 
believe  a  word  he  says,  but  I  can't  help  clapping  him 
he  's  so  pat.9*    That  I  call  the  triumph  of  oratory.' 

"When  you  convince  a  man  against  his  will, 
Though  he  is  of  the  same  opinion  still." 

5  Indeed,  sir,  I  learned  more  of  the  art  of  public 
speaking  last  evening  than  I  could  from  a  whole 
course  of  lectures  on  Rhetoric.' 

" '  Ah !  that  reminds  me,'  said  he,  '  ot  a  most 
extraordinary  circumstance  which  occurred  in  New 
Haven  the  other  day.     They  told  me  that  the  Pro- 


316        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

• ■ — — • 

fessor  of  Rhetoric  in  Yaie  College, — a  very  learned 
man,  is  n't  he  ? ' 

" '  Yes,  sir,  and  a  fine  critic  too/ 

"'Will,  I  suppose  so,  he  ought  to  be,  at  any 
rate,  —they  told  me  that  he  came  to  hear  me,  and 
took  notes  of  my  speech,  and  gave  a  lecture  on  it  to 
his  class  the  next  day ;  and,  not  satisfied  with  that* 
he  followed  me  up  to  Meriden  the  next  evening,  and 
heard  me  again  for  the  same  purpose.  Now,  if  this  is 
so,  it  is  to  my  mind  very  extraordinary.  I  should 
like  very  much  to  know  what  it  was  in  my  speech  you 
thought  so  remarkable,  and  what  you  suppose  inter 
ested  my  friend,  the  professor,  so  much/ 

" '  The  clearness  of  your  statements,  Mr.  Lincoln ; 
the  unanswerable  style  of  your  reasoning,  and 
especially  your  illustrations,  which  were  romance  and 
pathos,  and  fun  and  logic  all  welded  together.  That 
story  about  the  snakes,  for  example,  which  set  the 
hands  and  feet  of  your  Democratic  hearers  in  such 
vigorous  motion,  was  at  once  queer  and  comical,  and 
tragic  and  argumentative.  It  broke  through  all  the 
barriers  of  a  man's  previous  opinions  and  prejudices  at 
a  crash,  and  blew  up  the  very  citadel  of  his  false  theo- 
ries before  he  could  know  what  had  hurt  him/ 

" i  Can  you  remember  any  other  illustrations/  said 
he  l  of  this  peculiarity  of  my  style  ? ' 

"  I  gave  him  others  of  the  same  sort,  occupying 
some  half-hour  in  the  critique,  when  he  said :  'I  am 
much  obliged  to  you  for  this.  I  have  been  wishing 
for  a  long  time  to  find  some  one  who  would  make  this 
analysis  for  me.  It  throws  light  on  a  subject  which 
has  been  dark  to  me.     I  hope  you  have  not  been  too 


GOING   UP  HIGHER.  317 


flattering  in  your  estimate.  Certainly,  I  have  had  a 
most  wonderful  success,  for  a  man  of  my  limited 
education.' 

"'That  suggests,  Mr.  Lincoln,  an  inquiry  which 
has  several  times  been  upon  my  lips  during  this 
conversation.  I  want  very  much  to  know  how 
you  got  this  unusual  power  of  "putting  things." 
It  must  have  been  a  matter  of  education.  No  man 
has  it  by  nature  alone.  What  has  your  education 
been  ? ' 

"  *  Well,  as  to  education,  the  newspapers  are  cor- 
rect; I  never  went  to  school  more  than  six  months 
in  my  life.  But,  as  you  say,  this  must  be  a  product 
of  culture  in  some  form.  I  have  been  putting  the 
question  you  ask  me  to  myself,  while  you  have  been 
talking.  I  can  say  this,  that  among  my  earliest 
recollections  I  remember  how,  when  a  mere  child,  I 
used  to  get  irritated  when  any  body  talked  to  me  in  a 
way  I  could  not  understand,  I  don't  think  I  ever 
got  angry  at  anything  else  in  my  life.  But  that 
always  disturbs  my  temper,  and  has  ever  since.  I 
can  remember  going  to  my  little  bed-room,  after 
hearing  the  neighbors  talk  of  an  evening  with  my 
father,  and  spending  no  small  part  of  the  night 
walking  up  and  down,  and  trying  to  make  out  what 
was  the  exact  meaning  of  some  of  their,  to  me,  dark 
sayings.  I  could  not  sleep,  though  I  often  tried  to, 
when  I  got  on  such  a  hunt  after  an  idea,  until  I  had 
caught  it ;  and  when  I  thought  I  had  got  it,  I  was  not 
satisfied  until  I  had  repeated  it  over  and  over,  until 
I  had  put  it  in  language  plain  enough,  as  I  thought, 
for  any  boy  I  knew  to  comprehend.     This  was  a  kind 


318       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


bi  passion  with  me,  and  it  has  stuck  by  me ;  for  I  am 
never  easy  now,  when  I  am  handling  a  thought,  till 
I  have  bounded  it  North,  and  bounded  it  South,  and 
bounded  it  East,  and  bounded  it  West.  Peihaps 
that  accounts  for  the  characteristic  you  observe  in 
my  speeches,  though  I  never  put  the  two  things 
together  before.' 

" '  Mr.  Lincoln,  I  thank  you  for  this.  It  is  the 
most  splendid  educational  fact  I  ever  happened 
upon.  But,  let  me  ask,  did  you  prepare  for  your 
profession  ? ' 

"'Oh,  yes!  I  "read  law,"  as  the  phrase  is;  that 
is,  I  became  a  lawyer's  clerk  in  Springfield,  and 
copied  tedious  documents,  and  picked  up  what  I 
could  of  law  in  the  intervals  of  other  work.  But 
your  question  reminds  me  of  a  bit  of  education  I 
had,  which  I  am  bound  in  honesty  to  mention.  In 
the  course  of  my  law-reading,  I  constantly  came 
upon  the  word  demonstrate.  I  thought  at  first  that 
I  understood  its  meaning,  but  soon  became  satisfied 
that  I  did  not.  I  said  to  myself,  "  What  do  I  mean 
when  I  demonstrate  more  than  when  I  reason  or 
prove?  How  does  demonstration  differ  from  any 
other  proof?"  I  consulted  Webster's  Dictionary 
That  told  of  "certain  proof,"  "proof  beyond  the 
possibility  of  doubt ; "  but  I  could  form  no  idea 
what  sort  of  proof  that  was.  I  thought  a  great 
many  things  were  proved  beyond  a  possibility  of 
doubt,  without  recourse  to  any  such  extraordinary 
process  of  reasoning  ls  I  understood  "demonstra- 
tion "  to  be.  I  consulted  all  the  dictionaries  and 
books  of  reference  I  could  find,  but  with  no  better 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  319 

results.  You  might  as  well  have  defined  blue  to  a 
blind  man.  At  last  I  said,  "  Lincoln,  you  can 
never  make  a  lawyer  if  you  do  not  understand  what 
demonstrate  means ; "  and  I  left  my  situation  in 
Springfield,  went  home  to  my  father's  house,  and 
stayed  there  till  I  could  give  any  proposition  in  the 
six  books  of  Euclid  at  sight.  I  then  found  out 
what  "  demonstrate "  means,  and  went  back  to  my 
law-studies.' 

"  I  could  not  refrain  from  saying,  in  my  admiration 
at  such  a  development  of  character  and  genius 
combined  :  '  Mr.  Lincoln,  }  ar  success  is  no  longer 
a  marvel.  It  is  the  legitk  ate  result  of  adequate 
causes.  You  deserve  it  all,  and  a  great  deal  more. 
If  you  will  permit  me,  I  would  like  to  use  this  fact 
publicly.  It  will  be  most  valuable  in  inciting  our 
young  men  to  that  patient  classical  and  mathemat- 
ical culture  which  most  minds  absolutely  require. 
No  man  can  talk  well  unless  he  is  able  first  of  all 
to  define  to  himself  what  he  is  talking  about.  Eu- 
clid, well  studied,  would  free  the  world  of  half  its 
calamities,  by  banishing  half  the  nonsense  which 
now  deludes  and  curses  it.  I  have  often  thought 
that  Euclid  would  be  one  of  the  best  books  to  put 
3n  the  catalogue  of  the  Tract  Society,  if  they  could 
only  get  people  to  read  it.  It  would  be  a  means  of 
grace.' 

" '  I  think  so,'  said  he,  laughing ;  '  I  vote  for 
Euclid.' 

"As  we  neared  the  end  ot  our  journey,  Mr.  Lin- 
coln turned  to  me  very  pleasantly,  and  said :  *  I 
want   to   thank   you   for   this   conversation.     I    have 


330        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE   HOUSE. 

enjoyed  it  very  much/  I  replied,  referring  to  some 
stalwart  denunciations  he  had  just  been  uttering  ot 
the  demoralizing  influence  of  Washington  upon 
Northern  politicians  in  respect  to  the  slavery  ques- 
tion, '  Mr.  Lincoln,  may  I  say  one  thing  to  you 
before  we  separate  ? ' 

"  '  Certainly,  anything  you  please.' 

"'You  have  just  spoken  of  the  tendency  of  po- 
litical life  in  Washington  to  debase  the  moral  con- 
victions of  our  representatives  there  by  the  admix- 
ture of  considerations  of  mere  political  expediency. 
You  have  become,  by  the  controversy  with  Mr. 
Douglas,  one  of  our  leaders  in  this  great  struggle 
with  slavery,  which  is  undoubtedly  the  struggle  of 
the  nation  and  the  age.  What  I  would  like  to  say 
is  this,  and  I  say  it  with  a  full  heart,  Be  true  to  your 
principles  and  we  will  be  trite  to  you,  and  God  will 
be  true  to  us  all ! '  His  homely  face  lighted  up 
instantly  with  a  beaming  expression,  and  taking  my 
hand  warmly  in  both  of  his,  he  said  :  '  I  say  Amen 
to  that  —  Amen  to  that ! ' 

The  National  Republican  Convention  assembled  in 
Chicago  on  the  sixteenth  day  of  June,  i860.  A 
mammoth  "  Wigwam  "  was  erected  to  accommodate  the 
delegates  and  crowd  of  spectators  It  was  estimated 
that  twenty-five  thousand  men  attended  that  conven- 
tion. Fifteen  hundred  of  them  slept  under  the  roof 
of  a  single  hotel. 

The  candidates  for  President  were  William  H.  Sew. 
ard,  Salmon  P.  Chase,  Edward  Bates,  Judge  McLean, 
Willliam  L.  Dayton,  Simon  Cameron,  Abraham  Lin- 
coln and  Benjamin  F.  Wade.     It  must  be  conceded, 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  321 

however,  that  Mr.  Seward  was  by  far  the  most  promi- 
nent, and  his  nomination  was  generally  expected  by 
Republicans  in  the  East,  if  not  in  the  West.  Indeed, 
Mr.  Lincoln  was  not  known  to  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
Republican  party,  outside  of  the  western  States.  Mr. 
Chase  and  Judge  Bates  were  better  known  to  the 
people  of  the  whole  country  than  he.  But  the  ballot 
ing  proved  that  Mr.  Seward  was  not  so  strong  a 
candidate  as  many  anticipated.  Mr.  Chase  had  forty- 
nine  votes,  and  Judge  Bates  forty-eight,  in  the  infor- 
mal ballot,  while  Mr.  Lincoln  had  one  hundred  and 
two.  It  was  evident  that  Mr.  Seward  could  not  be 
nominated.  There  were  not  a  sufficient  number 
to  leave  their  favorite  candidates  for  him,  to  secure 
his  nomination.  But  as  the  result  proved,  there  were 
enough  who  would  leave  the  men  of  their  choice  and 
vote  for  Mr.  Lincoln,  to  elect  him.  To  them  Mr.  Lin- 
coln was  a  compromise  candidate,  v/hom  they  preferred, 
if  they  could  not  have  the  man  of  their  choice.  Mr. 
Lincoln  was  nominated  on  the  third  ballot.  The  scene 
that  followed  the  announcement  beggars  description. 
Not  a  storm,  but  a  hurricane  of  uncontrollable  enthu- 
siasm burst  from  the  vast  assembly,  augmented  by 
the  multitude  waiting  outside,  who  in  response  to  the 
cry  of  a  messenger  stationed  upon  the  roof  of  the 
"Wigwam,"  " Fire  the  salute!  Abe  Lincoln  is  nomi- 
nated" rent  the  air  with  their  deafening  shouts,  while 
the  thundering  roar  of  cannon,  peal  on  peal,  swelled 
the  din  into  fearful  proportions. 

The  news  was  flashed  over  the  wires  to  Springfield ; 
and,  when  it  was  received  at  the  office  of  the  Journal, 
where  Mr.  Lincoln  and  a  few  of  his  neighbors  were 


J22        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

gathered,  the  excitement  of  Chicago  was  repeated  on 
a  smaller  scale,  and  the  nominee  was  overwhelmed 
with  congratulations.  Taking  the  telegram  up,  Mr. 
Lincoln  remarked  :  — 

"  Well,  gentlemen,  there  is  a  little  woman  at  out 
house  who  is  probably  more  interested  in  this  dispatch 
than  I  am  ;  and  if  you  will  excuse  me,  I  will  take  it  up 
and  let  her  see  it." 

The  committee  of  the  Chicago  Convention  officially 
notified  Mr.  Lincoln  of  his  nomination,  at  his  home 
on  the  following  day.  A  few  citizens,  desiring  that 
their  distinguished  townsman  should  conform  to  an 
old  political  custom,  on  so  important  an  occasion,  pur- 
chased a  quantity  of  the  choicest  liquors  they  could 
find,  and  sent  them  to  his  house.  Mr.  Lincoln 
promptly  returned  them,  with  the  characteristic  mes- 
sage :  — 

"  You  know  that  we  never  do  any  such  thing  at  our 
house." 

The  correspondent  of  the  "  Portland  Press,"  who 
was  present,  says  that,  after  the  official  ceremonies 
and  formal  introductions  ended,  a  servant  brought  in  a 
waiter,  containing  a  large  pitcher  and  several  glass  tum- 
blers, when  "  Mr.  Lincoln  arose,  and  gravely  addressing 
the  company,  said  :  '  Gentlemen,  we  must  pledge  our 
mutual  healths  in  the  most  healthy  beverage  which 
God  has  given  to  man  —  it  is  the  only  beverage  I  have 
ever  used  or  allowed  in  my  family,  and  I  cannot  con- 
scientiously depart  from  it  on  the  present  occasion  —  it 
is  pure  Adam's  ale,  from  the  spring ; '  and,  taking  a 
tumbler,  he  touched  it  to  his  lips,  and  pledged  them 
his  highest  respects  in  a  cup  of  cold  water.     Of  course 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  323 


all  his  guests  were  constrained  to  admire  his  consis- 
tency, and  to  join  in  his  example.' ' 

His  neighbors  supposed  that  he  would  yield  his 
temperance  principles  to  the  demands  of  the  august 
occasion ;  but  he  was  not  the  man  to  do  that.  The 
statesman  who  dared  to  oppose  his  own  best  friends, 
and  say  to  the  world,  "  a  house  divided  against  itself 
cannot  stand,"  would  not  sacrifice  his  principles  now 
for  a  glass  of  wine. 

He  received  the  honored  guests  with  the  simplicity 
and  informality  for  which  he  was  famed,  and,  after 
assuring  them  that  he  had  nothing  stronger  than 
"Adam's  ale"  in  his  house,  he  drank  their  health  in 
the  " sparkling  beverage."  He  never  performed  a 
more  independent,  consistent,  and  worthy  act  than 
that.  He  stood  by  his  temperance  principles  just  as 
he  did  by  his  anti-slavery  principles. 

His  nomination  created  the  most  intense  excitement 
and  bitterness  in  the  slave  States.  Threats  of  seces- 
sion and  rebellion  came  from  them  with  every  wind 
that  blew.  His  election  in  the  following  November 
was  the  signal  for  the  southern  leaders  to  prepare  for 
civil  war  and  che  dissolution  of  the  Union.  Before 
Inauguration  Day  arrived  seven  of  the  southern  States 
had  seceded  and  organized  a  southern  Confederacy. 
Mutterings  of  the  coming  storm  were  heard.  The 
war-cloud  was  gathering,  dark  and  ominous.  The 
thunder  of  arms  was  heard  in  the  distance.  Beaten 
with  the  ballot,  the  champions  of  slavery  resolved  to 
conquer  with  the  bullet.     War  seemed  inevitable. 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  overwhelmed  with  visitors  from 
the  day  of  his  nomination,  until  he  removed  to  the 


324       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

White  House.  All  classes,  high  and  low,  rich  and 
poor,  great  and  little,  flocked  to  see  the  "tall  man  elo- 
quent," and  shake  his  hand.  Some  curious  incidents 
occurred,  which  exhibit  the  noble  qualities  of  the 
presidential  candidate  far  better  than  words.  Two 
young  men  entered  the  Executive  chamber  of  the 
State  House,  where  he  received  his  friends,  and  lin 
gered  near  the  door.  Observing  them,  Mr.  Lincoln 
approached  them,  saying  :  — 

"  How  do  you  do,  my  good  fellows  ?  What  can  I  do 
for  you  ?     Will  you  sit  down  ?  " 

"  We  do  not  care  to  sit,"  replied  the  shorter  of  the 
two. 

"  I  am  at  your  service,"  continued  Mr.  Lincoln  in 
his  familiar  way,  aiming  to  make  the  diffident  young 
men  feel  at  home. 

"  I  had  some  talk  with  my  friend  here,"  continued 
the  young  man,  "  about  your  height,  Mr.  Lincoln. 
He  thinks  he  is  just  as  tall  as  you  are." 

"  Ah  !  "  responded  Mr.  Lincoln  with  a  broad  smile, 
at  the  same  time  scanning  the  "tall  companion,"  "  he 
is  long  certainly.  Let  us  see  about  that."  He  went 
for  his  cane  and  returning,  said  : 

"  Here,  young  man,  we'll  see  who  is  the  longest." 

Placing  the  end  of  the  cane  upon  the  wall,  he  said  : 

"  Come  under  here,  young  man.  We  can  settle 
that  question  in  a  minute." 

The  young  man  stepped  under  the  cane,  and  when 
it  was  carefully  adjusted,  Mr.  Lincoln  continued  :  ''Now 
step  out  and  hold  the  cane  while  I  go  under." 

No  quicker  said  than  done. 

"He  is  just  my  height  exactly,"  he  remarked  to  the 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  32S 

shorter  visitor ;  "  he  guessed  with  remarkable  accu- 
racy/'  Then  taking  each  of  them  by  the  hand  with 
words  of  encouragement,  he  bade  them  good  by. 

He  saw  that  the  two  young  men  were  well  meaning 
but  verdant,  unacquainted  with  the  proprieties  of  the 
occasion ;  but,  sooner  than  have  them  feel  that  they 
had  insulted  his  dignity  he  would  measure  "  height ' 
with  them  a  dozen  times  over. 

An  old  woman  came  in  to  see  him  "because  he 
used  to  dine  at  her  house  when  he  was  on  the  Circuit/* 
Mr.  Lincoln  could  not  remember  her,  until  she  had 
called  his  attention,  definitely  to  certain  incidents. 

"  Oh,  yes ;  I  remember  now,"  he  said,  shaking  hei 
hand  heartily ;  "  I  hope  it  is  well  with  you,  my  dear 
woman/' 

"  Do  you  remember  that  scanty  dinner  I  gave  you 
one  day  ?" 

"  No,  I  am  sure  I  do  not  remember  anything  scant 
at  your  house/' 

"  Well,  you  did  have  a  scanty  dinner  one  day,"  she 
added.  "You  came  along  just  as  we  were  through 
dinner,  and  every  thing  was  eaten  up  ;  so  that  I  had 
nothing  to  give  you  but  a  bowl  of  bread  and  milk,  and 
you  ate  it,  and  when  you  got  up,  and  I  apologized  for 
having  nothing  better,  you  replied,  *  Why,  that  is  quite 
good  enough  for  the  President  of  the  United  States.' " 

Mr.  Lincoln  laughed  and  invoked  a  blessing  on  her 
head,  fully  appreciating  the  well-meant  friendship  that 
brought  her  eight  miles  on  purpose  to  remind  him  of 
the  "  scanty  dinner." 

Among  his  callers  was  Hannah  Arn  strong,  widow 
of  Jack  and  mother  of  William ;  and  a  more  sincere 


326       PIONEER  HOME    TO    WHITE  HOUSE. 

• — i  — ^ 

and  worshipful  visitor  he  did  not  have.  "  He  talked  to 
me  just  as  he  did  when  Jack  was  alive,"  she  said  after- 
wards. "  I  talked  to  him  some  time,  and  was  about  to 
bid  him  good-by.  I  had  told  him  that  it  was  the  last 
time  I  should  ever  see  him  ;  something  told  me  1 
should  never  see  him  again ;  they  would  kill  him. 
He  smiled  and  said,  '  Hannah,  if  they  do  kill  me,  I 
shall  never  die  another  death/     Then  I  bade  him  good 

by." 

A  grand  reception  was  tendered  him  in  Chicago. 
He  observed  a  little  girl  approaching  very  timidly. 
Beckoning  to  her  kindly,  he  said  :  "  Little  girl,  what 
will  you  have  ?  " 

"  I  want  your  name,"  she  hesitatingly  replied.  Just 
then  Mr.  Lincoln  observed  several  other  little  girls 
approaching,  and  he  responded  : 

"  But  here  are  several  other  little  girls  —  they  would 
feel  badly  if  I  should  give  my  name  only  to  you." 

" There  are  eight  of  us  in  all,"  she  answered,  "and 
all  of  us  want  your  name," 

"  Then  get  me  eight  sheets  of  paper,  with  pen  and 
ink,  and  I  will  see  what  can  be  done  for  you." 

The  paper  was  brought,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  sat  down 
at  a  table,  in  the  crowded  room,  and  wrote  a  line  upon 
^ach  sheet,  appending  his  name  thereto. 

A  little  boy  of  about  three  years  came  into  the  room 
with  his  father.  As  soon  as  he  entered,  he  swung  his 
hat,  and  cried  out,  "  Hurrah  for  Lincoln  !  "  The 
people  laughed,  and  Mr.  Lincoln,  joining  them,  caught 
up  the  little  fellow  and  gave  him  a  toss  towards  the 
ceiling,  exclaiming,  "  Hurrah  for  you  !  " 

These  were  pleasant  episodes  to  a  man  of  so  much 


GOING   UP  HIGHER.  327 


simplicity  and  real  kindness  as  Mr.  Lincoln  possessed, 
in  the  general  reception  of  dignitaries, --governors, 
statesmen,  senators,  judges,  divines,  etc. 

On  the  sixth  of  November,  Mr.  Lincoln  was  elected 
President  by  the  popular  vote  of  1,857,610,-491,634 
ifotes  more  than  were  cast  for  Mr.  Douglas.  In  the 
Electoral  College  he  received  180  votes,  and  Mr. 
Douglas  only  12;  the  others  being  divided  between 
Breckinridge  and  Bell. 

A  few  days  before  the  election,  the  Republicans  ol 
Springfield  placed  the  result  of  a  canvass  of  Spring- 
field in  Mr.  Lincoln's  hand.  He  called  into  the  Ex- 
ecutive Chamber  Mr.  Newton  Bateman,  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction  for  the  State  of  Illinois,  whose 
office  was  in  the  building.  Having  locked  the  door, 
he  said  :  — 

"  I  have  called  you  in  to  assist  me  in  looking  over 
this  canvass  of  Springfield  ;  I  desire  to  know  how  the 
ministers  and  some  good  people  will  vote." 

Mr.  Bateman  assented  to  his  proposition,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  examine  the  bock.  Mr.  Lincoln  frequently 
inquired  if  such  and  such  a  person  were  not  a  minister 
or  member  of  the  church,  to  which  Mr.  Bateman 
replied  according  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge.  With 
pencil  in  hand,  Mr.  Lincoln  kept  a  memorandum. 
When  the  examination  was  completed,  he  sat  in  silence, 
and  with  a  face  full  of  sadness  for  several  minutes. 
Then,  turning  to  Mr.  Bateman,  he  remarked :  — 

"  I  don't  understand  it.  Here  are  several  ministers, 
of  different  denominations,  against  me,  and  here  are 
prominent  members  of  the  churches  against  me.  Mr. 
Bateman,  I  am  not  a  Christian,  —  God  knows,  I  would 


S2S       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

be  one,  —  but  I  have  carefully  read  the  Bible,  and  I  do 
not  so  understand  this  book."  drawing  a  copy  of  the 
New  Testament  from  his  pocket.  After  a  brief  pause, 
he  continued :  — 

"  These  men  well  know  that  I  am  for  freedom  in  the 
Territories,  freedom  everywhere  as  far  as  the  Constitu- 
tion and  laws  will  permit,  and  that  my  opponents  are 
for  slavery.  They  know  this,  and  yet,  with  this  book 
m  their  hands,  in  the  light  of  which  human  bondage 
cannot  live  a  moment,  they  are  going  to  vote  against 
me.     I  do  not  understand  it  at  all." 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  on  his  feet,  evidently  filled  with 
emotion  over  the  grave  and  perilous  condition  of  the 
country.  In  silence  he  walked  up  and  down  the  room, 
going  back  and  forth  several  times,  with  deep  sadness 
depicted  on  his  face,  as  if  a  mighty  burden  were  rest- 
ing on  his  heart.  At  length,  suddenly  stopping  in  the 
centre  of  the  hall,  and  lifting  his  right  arm  heaven- 
ward, while  tears  were  on  his  cheek,  he  exclaimed  :  — . . 

"  I  know  there  is  a  God,  and  that  he  hates  injustice 
and  slavery.  I  see  the  storm  coming,  and  I  know 
that  His  hand  is  in  it.  If  He  has  a  place  and  work 
for  me,  I  am  ready.  I  am  nothing,  but  truth  is  every^ 
thing.  I  know  I  am  right,  because  I  know  that  liberty 
is  right.  I  have  told  them  that  a  house  divided  against 
itself  cannot  stand,  and  Christ  and  reason  say  the 
same ;  and  they  will  find  it  so.  Douglas  don't  care 
whether  slavery  is  voted  up  or  voted  down  ;  but  God 
cares,  and  humanity  cares,  and  I  care ;  and  with  God's 
help,  I  shall  not  fail.  I  may  not  see  the  end  ;  but  it 
will  come  ;  and  I  shall  be  vindicated  ;  and  these  men 
will  find  that  they  have  not  read  their  Bibles  aright." 


GOING   UP  HIGHER.  329 


He  spoke  nuch  of  this  as  if  soliloquizing,  and  then, 
turning  to  Mr.  Bateman,  he  added :  — 

"  Does  it  not  appear  strange  that  men  can  ignore 
the  moral  aspects  of  the  contest  ?  A  revelation  could 
not  make  it  plainer  to  me  that  slavery  or  the  govern^ 
ment  must  be  destroyed.  The  future  would  be  some- 
thing awful,  as  I  look  at  it,  but  for  this  rock  on  which 
I  stand,  especially  with  the  knowledge  of  how  some  of 
these  ministers  are  going  to  vote.  It  seems  as  if  God 
had  borne  with  slavery  until  the  very  teachers  of 
religion  have  come  to  defend  it  from  the  Bible,  and 
to  claim  for  it  a  divine  character  and  sanction  [re- 
ferring to  Drs.  Ross  and  Palmer  of  the  South,  of 
whom  mention  had  been  made]  ;  and  now  the  cup 
of  iniquity  is  full,  and  the  vials  of  wrath  will  be  poured 
out." 

He  went  on  still  further,  expressing  his  confidence 
in  Divine  Providence,  declaring  that  "  right  is  might," 
and  that  faith  in  God  "  is  indispensable  to  successful 
statesmanship  ; "  and  that  the  support  which  a  public 
man  receives  from  these  truths  is  grander  than  all 
other  support.  He  freely  announced  his  belief  in  the 
duty  and  power  of  prayer,  and  intimated  that  he  had 
sought  Divine  guidance  in  his  solemn  and  responsible 
position. 

Mr.  Bateman  responded  to  him  :  — 

"  I  have  not  supposed  that  you  were  accustomed  td 
think  so  much  upon  this  class  of  subjects.  Your 
friends  are  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  you  entertain  such 
pronounced  sentiments  on  these  topics  as  you  have 
expressed  to  me." 

"I  am  aware  of  that,"  Mr.  Lincoln  answered ;  "but 


330       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

f  think  more  on  these  subjects  than  upon  all  others, 
and  I  have  done  so  for  years." 

That  Mr.  Lincoln  was  a  child  of  Providence,  with- 
out  knowing  it,  led  and  disciplined  for  graver  respon* 
sibilities  than  any  previous  President  had  ever  borne, 
not  excepting  Washington,  is  clear  to  the  Bible 
student.  His  language  was  that  of  prophecy,  and  his 
spirit  was  that  of  a  Christian  hero  and  martyr. 

Before  leaving  Springfield  for  Washington,  Mr 
Lincoln  paid  his  mother  and  other  relatives  a  visit 
His  mother  was  living  with  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Moore, 
at  Farmington.  "  The  meeting  between  him  and  the 
old  lady,"  says  Mr.  Lamon,  "was  of  the  most  affec- 
tionate and  tender  character.  She  fondled  him  as  her 
own  *  Abe/  and  he  her  as  his  own  mother." 

Mrs.  Lincoln  returned  with  her  son  to  Charleston 
rhat  they  might  enjoy  each  other's  company  still 
longer.  When  the  time  arrived  that  Mr.  Lincoln  must 
leave,  both  he  and  his  mother  were  deeply  affected. 
Mr.  Lamon  continues  :  — 

"  The  parting  between  Mr.  Lincoln  and  his  mother 
was  very  touching.  She  embraced  him  with  deep 
emotion,  and  said  she  was  sure  she  should  never  behold 
him  again,  for  she  felt  that  i  his  enemies  would  assassi- 
nate him/ 

"  '  No,  no,  mother  ;  they  will  not  do  that.  Trust  in 
the  Lord  and  all  will  be  well ;  we  shall  see  each  other 
again/ 

"Inexpressibly  affected  by  this  new  evidence  of 
her  tender  attachment  and  deep  concern  for  his 
safety,  he  gradually  and  reluctantly  withdr^  w  from 
her    arms,    feeling    more    deeply   oppressed    iy    the 


GOING    UP  HIGHER.  33 1 

heavy  cares  which  time  and  events  were  rapidly  aug- 
menting." 

Mrs.  Lincoln  was  not  alone  in  her  fears  that  her 
son  would  come  to  an  untimely  end.  Neighbors  and 
friends  in  Springfield  were  equally  anxious. 

"  They  will  throw  the  cars  from  the  track,"  one 
suggested. 

"  Some  one  will  stab  him  in  the  crowd,"  another. 

"  He  will  be  poisoned  before  the  fourth  of  March," 
still  another. 

"He  will  be  shot  from  a  housetop  on  inauguration 
day,"  a  fourth. 

"  You  ought  to  take  a  cook  with  you  from  your  own 
female  friends,"  suggested  a  fifth. 

On  the  eleventh  day  of  February,  1861,  Mr.  Lin- 
coln left  Springfield  for  Washington  with  his  family. 
A  multitude  of  friends  and  neighbors  gathered  at  the 
depot  for  a  parting  hand-shake.  From  the  platform  of 
the  cars,  he  addressed  the  company. 

"  My  Friends  —  No  one  not  in  my  position  can  appreciate 
the  sadness  I  feel  at  this  parting.  To  this  people  I  owe  all  that 
I  am.  Here  I  have  lived  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century. 
Here  my  children  were  born,  and  here  one  of  them  lies  buried. 
I  know  not  how  soon  I  shall  see  you  again.  A  duty  devolves  on 
me  which  is  greater,  perhaps,  than  that  which  has  devolved  upon 
any  other  man  since  the  days  of  Washington.  He  never  v/ould 
have  succeeded  except  for  the  aid  of  Divine  Providence,  upon 
which  he  at  all  times  relied.  I  feel  that  I  cannot  succeed  without 
the  same  divine  aid  which  sustained  him,  and  on  the  same 
Almighty  Being  I  place  my  reliance  for  support  ;  and  I  hope 
you,  my  friends,  will  pray  that  I  may  receive  that  divine  assist* 
ance,  without  which  I  cannot  succeed,  but  with  which  success  \S 
certain.     Again  I  bid  you  all  an  affectionate  farewell." 


332        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


His  journey  to  Washington  was  signalized  by  sincere 
demonstrations  of  respect  and  honor.  His  passage 
was  like  that  of  a  conqueror.  From  the  beginning  to 
the  end  of  his  journey,  it  was  one  splendid  ovatioa 
At  all  the  cities  on  the  route,  he  addressed  the  vast 
multitudes  assembled,  and  his  sentiments  were  eagerly 
caught  up  and  borne  over  the  land ;  for  the  people 
were  eager  to  obtain  the  least  hint  of  his  future  poiicy. 
His  speeches  were  characterized  by  that  thoughtful, 
sound,  solid,  clear,  and  logical  element  that  ever  dis- 
tinguished his  best  efforts. 

The  presidential  party  was  met  at  Philadelphia  by 
the  son  of  Mr.  Seward,  with  the  startling  intelligence 
that  a  plot  had  been  discovered  to  assassinate  the 
President-elect  when  he  passed  through  Baltimore  on 
the  following  day.  Threats  of  assassination  had  been 
heard  again  and  again,  and  now  detectives  supposed 
that  they  had  discovered  a  veritable  plot,  and  that 
speedy  action  alone  could  thwart  the  purpose  of  the 
conspirators. 

A  consultation  with  Mr.  Lincoln  followed,  and  it 
was  arranged  that,  instead  of  going  on  the  presidential 
train  the  next  day,  Mr.  Lincoln  should  be  taken 
through  that  night  to  Washington  by  the  night  ex- 
press. At  half-past  six  next  morning  he  reached 
Washington,  and  the  news  of  his  arrival  was  flashed 
at  once  over  the  country  by  the  telegraphic  wires. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

U&&   IN  THE   WHITE   HOUSE. 

|UR  purpose  being  to  see  the  man  Lincoln 
in  the  highest  office,  as  we  saw  the  boy 
Abraham  in  his  pioneer  home,  we  shall  not 
recount  his  public  deeds  in  overthrowing  the 
"  Rebellion,"  which  lasted  during  his  entire  life  in  the 
Executive  Mansion.  His  remarkable  success  in  mar- 
shalling the  "  Union  Army  "  of  more  than  two  million 
men,  controlling  the  perilous  factions  of  the  country, 
securing  the  confidence  of  every  true  patriot  in  the 
land,  organizing  victory  upon  a  thousand  battle-fields, 
creating  a  powerful  navy,  raising  three  thousand 
million  dollars  for  the  war,  restoring  the  public  credit, 
emancipating  four  million  slaves,  and  restoring  peace 
upon  a  stronger  basis  than  ever,  is  well  known  to  the 
world.  These  achievements  caused  M.  Laboulaye  to 
exclaim,  at  the  College  of  France,  before  an  immense 
audience  of  the  elite  of  the  intellectual  world,  "  Mr. 
Lincoln  is  a  greater  man  than  Cesar."  To  record 
a  history  of  these  achievements  would  require  a  vol- 
ume instead  of  two  or  three  chapters,  and  even  then  the 
real  character  of  the  man  might  not  appear  so  clearly 
as   it   does   in   certain   incidents   of    his   presidential 


334       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

career.  In  his  daily  life,  at  the  head  of  the  nation,  we 
are  to  find  those  qualities  of  mind  and  heart  which 
made  him  truly  great.  Incidents  will  illustrate  his 
ability,  honesty,  patriotism,  industry,  kindness,  self 
reliance,  firmness,  tact,  wit,  genius,  magnanimity,  and 
influence,  far  better  than  declamation.  For  this  reason 
we  shall  present  his  presidential  career  through  the 
most  instructive  incidents  of  his  life  in  the  White 
House. 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  inaugurated  on  the  fourth  of  March, 
1 86 1.  A  vast  concourse  of  people  assembled  at  Washh 
ington  to  witness  the  imposing  ceremonies.  Fears  of 
an  outbreak  and  the  possible  assassination  of  the 
President  led  General  Scott  to  provide  ample  military 
defence  of  the  city.  President  Lincoln  closed  his 
inaugural  address  with  the  following  touching  appeal 
to  the  enemies  of  the  Government  :  — 

"  In  your  hands,  my  dissatisfied  fellow-countrymen,  and  not  in 
mine,  is  the  momentous  issue  of  civil  war.  The  government  wik 
not  assail  you.  You  can  have  no  conflict  without  being  your- 
selves the  aggressors.  You  have  no  oath  registered  in  heaven 
to  destroy  the  government  ;  while  I  shall  have  the  most  solemn 
one  to  preserve,  protect,  and  defend  it.  I  am  loath  to  close. 
We  are  not  enemies,  but  friends.  We  must  not  be  enemies. 
Though  passion  may  be  strained,  it  must  not  break  our  bonds  of 
affection.  The  mystic  chords  of  memory,  stretching  from  every 
battle-field  and  patriot  grave  to  every  living  heart  and  hearth- 
stone all  over  this  broad  land,  will  yet  swell  the  chorus  of  the 
Union,  when  again  touched,  as  surely  they  will  be,  by  the  better 
angels  of  our  nature." 

On  that  morning,  Mrs.  Lincoln  relates,  he  read  his 
inaugural  address  to  his  family ;  and  after  having  read 
it,  he  requested  to  be  left  alone.     The  door  stood  ajar, 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  335 

and  his  friends  distinctly  heard  him  in  prayer,  corn- 
mending  himself,  his  country,  and  his  family  to  the 
care  and  protection  of  God.  The  weight  of  responsi- 
bility laid  upon  him  was  too  great  for  his  human  heart 
to  bear  alone.  His  Cabinet  were  William  H.  Seward, 
Secretary  of  State  ;  Salmon  P.  Chase,  Secretary  oi 
the  Treasury;  Simon  Cameron,  Secretary  of  War: 
Gideon  Welles,  Secretary  of  the  Navy  ;  Caleb  B.  Smith* 
Secretary  of  the  Interior;  Montgomery  Blair,  Post. 
master-General ;  and  Edward  Bates,  Attorney-General, 
—  a  b  ay  of  advisers  with  whom  the  loyal  people 
were  well  pleased. 

A  distinguished  senator  said  to  President  Lincoln, 
just  after  his  inauguration  :  — 

"  You  have  as  difficult  a  task  in  hand  as  Washing* 
ton  had,  when  he  took  command  of  the  American 
army,  and  as  little  to  do  with." 

"  That  is  true,  substantially,"  replied  the  President, 
"but  then  I  have  larger  resources  to  draw  from,"  a 
reply  which  showed  that  a  hopeful,  discriminating, 
'houghtful  man  had  moved  into  the  Executive 
yiansion. 

"You  are  right,  Mr.  President,"  responded  the 
Senator ;  "  but  my  remark  had  reference  to  the  weak 
condition  of  the  government,  as  the  out-going  adminis 
tration  left  it  —  no  money,  no  army,  no  navy,  nc 
fire-arms,  nc  nothing  for  you  to  begin  with." 

"  But  really,  I  have  what  is  better,  the  patriotism  oi 
the  loyal  people,"  was  the  President's  just  and  noble 
reply.  Honorable  Henry  J.  Raymond,  speaking  of  a 
leading  feature  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  administration,  said  1 
u  From  the  outset  his  reliance  was  upon  the  spirit  and 


33^       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

patriotism  of  the  people.  He  had  no  overweening 
estimate  of  his  own  sagacity,  he  was  quite  sensible  oi 
his  lack  of  that  practical  knowledge  of  men  and  affairs 
which  experience  of  both  alone  can  give ;  but  he  had 
faith  in  the  devotion  of  the  people  to  the  principles  of 
Republican  government,  in  their  attachment  to  the 
Constitution  and  the  Union,  and  in  that  intuitive 
sagacity  of  a  great  community  which  always  trans^ 
cends  the  most  cunning  devices  of  individual 
men,  and  in  a  great  and  perilous  crisis,  more  re- 
sembles inspiration  than  the  mere  deduction  of  the 
human  intellect.  At  the  very  outset  of  his  administra- 
tion, President  Lincoln  cast  himself,  without  reserve 
and  without  fear,  upon  this  reliance.' '  A  man  of  less 
confidence  in  the  ability  and  fidelity  of  the  loyal 
people  for  such  a  crisis  would  not  have  been  qualified 
for  his  position. 

The  senator  referred  to  facts  with  which  the  country 
was  familiar ;  that  is,  that  the  National  Government 
had  been  under  the  control  of  the  South,  especially 
during  the  previous  administration,  and  that  the 
cabinet  had  used  their  opportunity  to  prepare  for  civil 
war,  by  taking  possession  of  its  resources,  that  north- 
ern strength  might  be  diminished.  Howell  Cobb  was 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  under  the  previous  admin 
^stration,  and  he  was  a  slaveholder  from  Georgia 
He  left  the  public  treasury  without  a  dollar,  and  the 
national  credit  so  much  impaired  that  borrowing 
money  was  difficult,  if  not  impossible.  It  was  supposed 
that  he  used  several  million  dollars  of  the  public 
money  in  preparation  for  the  rebellion.  John  B. 
Floyd  was  Secretary  of   War ;   and   he   was  a  slave* 


UFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  33* 


holder  from  Vh^inia.  He  depleted  northern  arsenals, 
as  Cobb  depleted  the  treasury,  and  sent  rifles, 
muskets,  cannon,  mortars,  balls,  powder  and  shells,  to 
important  posts  in  the  South.  The  "Memphis 
Appeal,"  a  disloyal  journal  of  Tennessee,  said  that 
i6  seven  hundred  and  seven  thousand  stand  of  arms, 
and  two  hundred  thousand  revolvers,  were  distributed 
at  convenient  points  in  the  South,  by  the  action  of 
Secretary  Floyd,  at  the  commencement  of  the  Re- 
bellion." Isaac  Toucey  of  Connecticut  was  Secretary 
of  the  Navy,  and  though  not  a  slaveholder,  he  was  as 
servile  a  tool  in  the  hands  of  rebel  manipulators  as 
lived ;  and  he  scattered  our  navy,  ninety  vessels,  so 
widely  that  it  could  be  of  no  immediate  service  to  the 
government,  when  the  South  should  rise  up  against  it. 
Only  two  vessels  of  our  entire  naval  squadron  remained 
in  northern  ports  when  Mr.  Lincoln  became  Presi- 
dent. It  was  to  this  discouraging  condition  of  affairs 
that  the  senator  referred  in  addressing  Mr.  Lincoln. 
The  latter  closed  the  interview  by  telling  a  story. 

"  Did  you  read  the  prophecy  which  the  papers  say 
was  spoken  about  my  administration  ? "  asked  Mr. 
Lincoln. 

The  senator  signified  that  he  had  not. 

"  Well,"  added  Mr.  Lincoln,  "  a  prophet  foretells 
that  my  administration  will  be  the  reign  of  steel.  To 
which  a  wag  replied,  '  Buchanan's  was  the  reign  of 
Stealing'  r 

Mr.  Lincoln's  humor  aided  his  hopefulness  wonder 
fully  in  the  very  embarrassing  circumstances  in  which 
he  found  the  government,  and  thereby  he  was  all  the 
better  fitted  to  rule  the  nation  at  such  a  time. 


33§       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


It  was  very  important  that  a  leading  Democrat  in 
Congress  should  stand  squarely  by  Mr.  Lincoln's  ad- 
ministration;  and  Senator  Douglas,  the  President's 
old  antagonist,  was  the  man,  above  all  others,  to  do  it. 
Therefore  Mr.  Ashmun,  of  Massachusetts,  called  upon 
him  on  the  day  after  the  fall  of  Sumter,  April  14th, 
1861,  just  as  the  President  was  completing  his  procla- 
mation and  call  for  seventy-five  thousand  militia. 

"  No  man  can  render  greater  service  to  the  country 

than  yourself  now,  Mr.  Douglas,"  said  Mr.  Ashmun  , 

'  and  I  want  you   to  go  to  the  President  and  assure 

him  of  your  cordial  support  in  all  necessary  measures 

to  subdue  the  rebellion." 

"  Mr.  Lincoln  has  dealt  hardly  with  me,  in  removing 
some  of  my  friends  from  office,"  replied  Mr.  Douglas, 
"and  I  don't  know  as  he  wants  my  advice  or  aid." 

"  But  Mr.  Lincoln  followed  Democratic  precedents 
in  such  removals,"  suggested  Mr.  Ashmun.  "  How- 
ever, this  is  a  time  when  the  question  of  saving  the 
Union  towers  above  ail  party  affiliations,  and  you  can 
put  the  country  under  lasting  gratitude  to  yourself, 
and  show  the  people,  also,  that,  in  the  hour  of  national 
peril,  you  can  trample  all  party  considerations  under 
your  feet." 

"  True,  very  true,"  responded  Mr,  Douglas,  with 
considerable  emotion  ;  "and  no  man  shall  excel  me  in 
devotion  to  my  country.  My  whole  nature  rises  up  to 
condemn  this  Rebellion." 

Here,  Mrs.  Douglas,  who  was  present,  joined  Mr 
Ashmun  in  the  most  affectionate  appeals  co  her  hus- 
band, to  take  the  important  step  suggested.  The  result 
was,  that  Senator  Douglas  accompanied  his  friend  ta 


LIFE  IN   THE   WHITE  HOUSE.  339 

the  White  House,  where  the  two  "giants  "  and  former 
antagonists  of  the  West  were  brought  face  to  face 
Grasping  the  President  by  the  hand,  Mr,  Douglas 
said,  — 

"  You  are  my  President,  Mr„  Lincoln,  as  well  as  the 
country's." 

The  President's  heart  was  touched,  and  he  shook  the 
senator's  hand  heartily,  thanking  him  for  his  cordial 
support,  and  assuring  him  that  the  administration 
would  appreciate  his  patriotic  position. 

"  Now  permit  me  to  read  to  you  this  important  docu- 
ment," added  Mr.  Lincoln,  taking  up  his  proclamation 
in  which  he  called  for  seventy-five  thousand  troops ; 
"  you  understand  the  situation  as  well  or  better  than  I, 
and  you  will  readily  see  the  wisdom  or  unwisdom  of 
the  measure." 

Senator  Douglas  signified  his  desire  to  hear  the 
document  read.  Slowly,  seriously,  and  distinctly  Mr. 
Lincoln  read  it  through,  when,  without  waiting  to  be 
asked,  Mr.  Douglas  said,  — 

"  Mr.  President,  I  cordially  concur  in  every  word  of 
that  document,  except  that,  instead  of  the  call  for 
seventy-five  thousand  men,  I  would  make  it  two  hun- 
dred thousand.  You  do  not  know  the  dishonest 
purposes  of  those  men  as  well  as  I  do." 

Turning  to  a  map  hanging  on  the  wall,  he  pointed  out 
the  many  strategic  points  that  should  be  strengthened 
at  once,  and  closed  by  adding,  that  "the  Government 
must  pursue  a  firm  and  warlike  course  to  crush  the 
Rebellion." 

On  retiring  from  the  President's  room,  Mr.  Ashmun 
said,  — 


34°       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"You  have  done  justice  to  your  own  reputation  and 
to  the  President ;  and  the  country  must  know  it.  The 
proclamation  will  go  by  telegraph  in  the  morning  all 
over  the  country,  and  the  account  of  this  interview 
must  go  with  it.  I  shall  send  it  either  in  my  own 
language  or  yours.  I  prefer  you  should  give  your  own 
Version.' ' 

Mr.  Douglas  consented  to  write  the  dispatch,  and 
the  following  day  the  country  knew  that  he  stood  side 
by  side  with  Mr.  Lincoln  in  saving  the  Union.  From 
that  time  until  Mr.  Douglas  died,  the  President  num- 
bered him  among  his  true  and  tried  friends.  He 
rendered  valuable  assistance  to  Mr.  Lincoln  in  learning 
the  plans  of  the  rebels  and  disclosing  their  real  animus. 
The  President  regarded  his  death  as  a  public  bereave- 
ment. 

These  two  incidents  disclose  the  simplicity,  hopeful- 
ness, patriotism,  wisdom,  magnanimity,  and  freedom 
from  a  partisan  spirit,  which  proved  so  helpful  to  the 
President  from  the  beginning  of  his  rule. 

Mr.  Lincoln  kept  sacred  the  words  of  his  inaugural 
address  —  "  You  can  have  no  conflict  without  being 
yourselves  the  aggressors.,,  But  when  the  first  gun 
was  fired  upon  Fort  Sumter,  in  Charleston  harbor, 
the  South  became  the  aggressors.  That  was  on  the 
twelfth  day  of  April,  1861.  On  the  previous  afternoon. 
General  Beauregard,  who  commanded  the  rebel  forces, 
ordered  the  commander  of  the  fort  — Major  Robert 
Anderson  —  to  surrender.     The  major  replied:  — 

"  My  sense  of  honor  and  duty  compel  me  to  hold  the 
fort  for  my  government.,, 

"  Shall  you  treat  the  city  as  a  hostile  town  ? "  he  was 
asked. 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  341 

"Only  if  I  am  compelled  to  do  so,"  was  his  noble 
reply 

So  careful  had  the  President  been  of  offering  any 
provocation  to  the  enemy  to  fire  upon  oui  flag,  that  he 
sent  an  unarmed  vessel,  instead  of  a  man-of-war,  with 
supplies  to  the  half-starved  garrison;  and  the  vessel 
was  not  allowed  to  deliver  the  supplies  —  the  rebel 
troops  prevented. 

At  half-past  four  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the 
twelfth,  the  bombardment  was  opened  by  twelve 
thousand  troops,  nearly  twenty  thousand  more  being 
spectators.  It  was  more  than  two  hours  before  the 
garrison  replied,  Major  Anderson  thus  allowing  the 
insurgents  to  prove  unmistakably  their  treasonable 
designs  to  the  world.  All  through  the  day  and  the 
following  night,  the  terrible  cannonade  was  continued, 
the  gallant  band  within  the  fort  standing  by  their  guns 
until  the  barracks  took  fire,  compelling  them  to  roll 
ninety-six  barrels  of  powder  into  the  sea,  and  exhaust 
themselves  in  extinguishing  the  flames.  In  the  after- 
noon of  the  thirteenth,  the  garrison  surrendered  upon 
terms  perfectly  satisfactory  to  Major  Anderson,  and 
*hey  marched  out  of  the  fort  with  flags  flying  and 
drums  beating,  taking  all  their  private  property  with 
them,  and  saluting  the  stars  and  stripes  with  fifty  guns. 
The  enemy  had  hurled  two  thousand  tJiree  hundred  and 
sixty-one  shot  and  nine  hundred  and  eighty  shells  at  the 
fort,  when  it  passed  into  their  hands. 

The  news  of  the  fall  of  Sumter  flashed  over  the  land, 
and  awakened  the  loyal  people  to  the  dangers  of  the 
hour.  The  aggressors  had  settled  what  the  policy  of 
the  President  must  be.     War  against  the  Government 


342        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 
'  - —  * 

had  begun,  and  the  appeal  to  arms  must  be  accepted 
Hence  the  call  for  seventy-five  thousand  troops  and  the 
interview  with  Mr.  Douglas  to  which  reference  has 
been  made.  From  that  time,  President  Lincoln  was 
occupied  in  efforts  to  conquer  the  Rebellion  —  creating 
an  army  and  navy ;  raising  money  to  carry  on  warlike 
preparations  ;  securing  necessary  legislation,  and  othei 
things  indispensable  to  the  national  defence.  Not  the 
least  of  all  his  labors  was  acquainting  himself  with 
military  affairs  and  the  best  way  of  saving  the  Repub- 
lic. For  he  was  President,  and  no  one  else.  While 
ever  ready  to  accept  advice,  and  even  to  seek  advice 
from  more  experienced  public  servants  in  both  civil 
and  military  life,  by  which  he  shaped  or  corrected  his 
own  opinions,  he  reserved  the  final  decision  to  himself. 
A  leading  member  of  the  cabinet  remarked,  on  one 
occasion  : 

"  The  President  is  his  own  war-minister.  He  directs 
personally  the  movements  of  the  armies,  and  is  fond  of 
strategy  ;  but  pays  much  less  attention  to  official  duties 
than  is  generally  supposed." 

It  was  so  with  all  measures,  whether  civil  or  military. 
While  the  head  of  each  department  was  left  untram- 
melled in  his  particular  work,  and  was  held  responsible 
for  the  proper  conduct  of  its  affairs  by  the  President,  the 
latter  never  relinquished  his  right  of  judgment.  For 
example,  in  his  annual  report  to  Congress,  Senator 
Cameron  advised  arming  the  slaves  that  they  might 
rise  successfully  against  their  masters  — a  measure  that 
had  been  persistently  urged  upon  the  President.  As 
Mr.  Lincoln  reserved  the  right  of  supervising  affairs, 
knowing  that  the  great  Dublic  would  hold  him  respon- 


LIFE  IN  THE   WHITE  HOUSE.  343 


sible,  he  carefully  read  the  report.  When  he  came  to 
that  recommendation,  surprised  and  almost  indignant* 
he  drew  his  pen  across  it,  remarking :  — 

"  This  will  never  do.  Secretary  Cameron  must  take 
no  such  responsibility.  That  is  a  question  that  belongs 
exclusively  to  me." 

When  the  public  heart  was  deeply  touched  by  the 
sufferings  of  our  soldiers,  who  had  fallen  into  the  hands 
of  the  rebels,  and  righteous  indignation  was  aroused 
over  the  cruelties  of  Libby  prison  and  Andersonville, 
there  were  not  wanting  public  men  who  advised  Mr, 
Lincoln  to  subject  the  rebel  prisoners  in  Northern 
prisons  to  similar  treatment  by  way  of  retaliation.  But 
the  proposition  outraged  his  feelings,  and  he  said  to 
Mr.  Odell:  — 

"  I  can  never,  never  starve  men  like  that.  Whatever 
others  may  say  or  do,  I  never  can,  and  /  never  will,  be 
accessory  to  such  treatment  of  human  beings." 

Many  Republicans  were  dissatisfied  with  Mr.  Cam- 
eron as  a  member  of  the  cabinet,  and  early  in  Mr. 
Lincoln's  administration,  a  delegation  of  bankers  from 
Boston  and  New  York  waited  upon  him  to  urge  the  re- 
moval of  the  War  Secretary.  The  President  heard  thern 
through,  and  was  somewhat  exercised  over  the  weak- 
ness of  their  arguments  and  the  persistency  of  their 
appeals.     He  cut  short  the  interview  by  saying  :  — 

"You  talk  very  glibly,  nevertheless  I  am  not  con 
vinced.  Now,  gentlemen,  if  you  want  General  Cameron 
removed,  you  have  only  to  bring  me  one  proved  case  of 
dishonesty,  and  I  promise  you  his  '  head  ; '  but  I  assure 
you  I  am  not  going  to  act  on  what  seems  to  me  the 
most  unfounded  gossip." 


344       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

A  congressional  committee  was  appointed  to  examine 
a  newly  invented  gun,  and  report  upon  the  same. 
When  the  report  was  sent  to  Mr.  Lincoln,  who  was 
conferring  with  Hon.  Mr.  Hubbard  of  Connecticut 
upon  the  subject,  he  glanced  at  the  voluminous  docu 
nient  of  many  manuscript  pages,  and  said,  — 

"  I  should  want  a  new  lease  of  life  to  read  this  through ! ' 
Then  throwing  it  upon  the  table,  he  added,  "  Why  can't 
a  committee  of  this  kind  occasionally  exhibit  a  grain 
of  common  sense  ?  If  I  send  a  man  to  buy  a  horse  for 
me,  I  expect  him  to  tell  me  his  points,  not  how  many 
hairs  there  are  in  his  tail." 

The  celebrated  case  of  Franklin  W.  Smith  and  his 
brother,  of  Boston,  who  were  unjustly  arrested,  im- 
prisoned and  persecuted  for  months,  by  a  military 
tribunal,  on  the  pretext  of  defrauding  ihe  government, 
is  in  point.  Mr.  Lincoln  examined  the  case  thoroughly, 
and  satisfied  himself  that  the  two  brothers  were  inno- 
cent. As  soon  as  he  reached  that  conclusion,  he  did 
not  hesitate  to  assume  the  responsibility,  and  issue  the 
following  order,  without  fear  or  favor  :  — 

"  Whereas,  Franklin  W.  Smith  had  transactions  with  the  Navy 
Department  to  the  amount  of  one  and  a  quarter  millions  of 
dollars  ;  and  whereas,  he  had  the  chance  to  steal  a  quarter  of  a 
million,  and  was  only  charged  with  stealing  twenty-two  hundred 
dollars  —  and  the  question  now  is  about  his  stealing  a  hundred  — 
I  don't  believe  he  stole  anything  at  all.  Therefore,  tfte  record 
and  findings  are  disapproved  —  declared  null  and  void,  and  the 
defendants  are  fully  discharged." 

These  facts  show  that  the  President  was  firm  as  he 
was  lenient,  — when  firmness  was  necessary,  and  that 
the  oft-repeated  charge,  during  his  administration,  of 


LIFE  IN   THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  345 

"  having  no  mind  of  his  own,"  and  being  "  destitute  of 
will  power,"  was  without  foundation.  He  could  even 
resort  to  physical  force  when  the  exigencies  of  the 
case  demanded  it,  as  the  following  incident  shows  :  — 

An  officer  of  the  army  had  been  cashiered  from  the 
service.  Having  prepared  an  elaborate,  written  de- 
fence of  himself  he  appeared  before  the  President  and 
read  it. 

"  According  to  your  own  statement  of  the  case  the 
facts  do  not  warrant  executive  interference,',  said  Mr. 
Lincoln. 

The  officer  appeared  the  second  and  even  the  third 
time,  going  over  substantially  the  same  ground  in  his 
plea  ;  but  with  no  better  success.  The  President  felt 
that  he  was  justly  cashiered. 

"  I  see  you  are  not  disposed  to  do  me  justice,  Mr. 
President,"  said  the  officer,  at  last,  insultingly. 

This  was  too  aggravating  for  the  even-tempered 
President ;  and,  rising  from  his  seat,  he  seized  the 
fellow  by  his  coat  collar,  and  thrust  him  out  ^f  the 
door,  saying  : 

"  Sir,  I  give  you  fair  warning  never  to  show  yourself 
in  this  room  again.  I  can  bear  censure,  but  not  in- 
sult ! " 

The  officer  begged  for  his  papers  which  he  had 
dropped. 

"  Begone,  sir/'  replied  the  President;  "your  papers 
will  be  sent  to  you.  I  never  wish  to  see  your  face 
again." 

The  second  year  of  his  administration  brought  per- 
sonal sorrow,  in  addition  to  the  perplexities  and  trials 
of  his  office.     "  I  thought  the  war  was  all  that  I  could 


34^       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

bear,  but  this  great  affliction  is  worse  than  war,"  he 
said.  His  son,  Willie,  died,  and  "Tad"  was  in  a  dying 
condition  at  the  time.  We  record  the  circumstances 
as  related  to  us  by  Mrs.  Rebecca  R.  Pomroy,  a  hos 
pital  nurse  of  rare  experience,  whose  services  in 
the  family,  at  the  time,  were  invaluable.  Miss  Dix 
recommended  her  to  Mr.  Lincoln  on  the  last  day  of 
Willie's  mortal  life.  Mrs.  Pomroy  had  twenty  or 
thirty  sick  soldiers  under  her  charge,  and  eight  of 
them  were  not  expected  to  live  through  the  day. 
"How  can  I  leave  them?"  she  said.  "It  is  imposs 
sible."  "But  you  must"  answered  Miss  Dix:  "the 
Lord's  hand  is  plainly  in  it.  I  shall  send  for  you  in 
two  hours  ; "  and  she  did. 

On  arriving  at  the  Executive  Mansion,  Miss  Dix 
conducted  her  into  the  green  room,  where  the  lifeless 
remains  of  Willie  had  just  been  laid  out.  Thence,  she 
was  taken  to  Mrs.  Lincoln's  chamber,  where  she  was 
lying  quite  sick.  From  Mrs.  Lincoln's  room  she  was 
led  into  an  adjoining  one  where  little  "Tad"  lay  in  a 
dying  condition.  The  physicians  had  relinquished  all 
hope  of  his  recovery  and  he  was  not  expected  to  live 
twenty-four  hours.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  sitting  by  him 
"the  very  picture  of  despair."  "Mrs.  Pomroy,  Mr. 
President,"  said  Miss  Dix.  Mr.  Lincoln  arose,  and 
/ery  heartily  shook  her  hand,  saying  :  — 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  you  :  I  have  heard  of  you.  Yon 
have  come  to  a  sad  house."  His  deep  emotion  choked 
further  utterance  and  the  tears  streamed  down  his 
careworn  cheeks. 

Later  both  took  seats  beside  "Tad's"  cot —  one  on 
each  side.     The  little  sufferer  lay  unconscious,  appa« 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  347 

rently  very  near  death.     Soon  a  telegram  from  Port 
Hudson  was  brought  to  the  President. 

"What  news?"  inquired  Mrs.  Pomroy. 

"  Oh,  bad  enough ;  a  terrible  battle  is  going  on  at 
Port  Hudson  ;  we  don't  know  how  it  will  turn.  I  hope 
God  will  give  us  the  victory  there :  it  will  be  a  great 
gain  for  us." 

"We  must  pray  that  God  may  give  us  the  vic- 
tory," replied  Mrs.  Pomroy.  "There  is  nothing  like 
prayer." 

"  True,  very  true,"  answered  the  President.  "  But 
between  this  terrible  war  and  this  sorrow  I  am  having 
a  sad  time.     Why  is  it  ?     Oh,  why  is  it  ? " 

Later  still  the  President  looked  up  and  inquired  : 

"  What  led  you  into  the  hospital  service  ?  You 
appear  to  be  a  feeble  woman." 

"  God  called  me  into  the  service.  I  took  care  of  a 
sick  husband  almost  twenty  years." 

"  What  about  your  family,"  urged  the  President ; 
"  let  me  hear  about  it." 

"My  husband  and  three  of  my  four  children  are 
now  on  the  other  side.     My  living  son  is  in  the  army." 

"  How  mysteriously  God  deals  with  us  !  "  answered 
Mr.  Lincoln.  "  I  trust  that  He  will  spare  your  son,  and 
in  due  time  return  you  both  to  your  home  again.  But 
was  this  your  call  to  the  hospital  service  ? " 

"Yes  :    through   this    service   for   my  sick   family 
God  fitted  me  to  take  care  of  the  soldiers,  and  he  has 
wonderfully  sustained  me  by  giving  me  strength  far 
beyond  the  expectation  of  my  friends." 

"  How  was  it,"  continued  the  President,  now  greatly 
interested  in  her  story.     "  Tell  me  all  about  it  * 


i 

S4&       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


"My  mother  died,  and  then  my  brother,  and  then 
my  little  daughter,  —  my  only  daughter,  the  light  of  our 
iiome  — and  then  two  sons,  and,  last  of  all,  my  dear 
husband,"  Mrs.  Pomroy  answered  calmly,  as  only  a 
trusting  Christian  woman  could.  "When  my  husband 
passed  away,  our  little  cottage  with  all  its  furniture 
had  to  be  sold  in  order  to  liquidate  debts." 

"  How  did  you  live  ?  "  eagerly  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln 
at  this  point.  "Tell  me  how  you  could  bear  so 
much  ?  " 

"  By  the  grace  of  God,  though  I  was  far  from  being 
what  I  ought  to  have  been.  My  husband  and  all  the 
other  dear  members  of  my  family  died  in  the  triumphs 
of  faith,  so  that  I  had  great  reason  to  be  thankful, 
and — " 

"Were  you  resigned?"  interrupted  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  I  was  not  wholly  resigned  then." 

"  Did  you  feel  rebellious  ? "  he  inquired,  still  more 
earnestly. 

"Yes;  I  knew  that  'whom  the  Lord  loveth  he 
chasteneth/  but  I  could  not  understand  it.  I  did  not 
think  that  He  loved  me,  —  I  could  not.  Finally,  how- 
ever, I  was  brought  into  a  higher  Christian  experience, 
where  I  could  say  honestly,  '  The  Lord  gave  and  the 
Lord  has  taken  away,  blessed  be  the  name  of  the 
Lord.'" 

"  And  how  was  that  brought  about  ? "  asked  Mr, 
Lincoln,  as  if  he  were  passing  through  a  similar*  ex 
perience. 

Mrs.  Pomroy  rehearsed  how  Christian  friends  inter- 
ested themselves  to  take  her  to  a  camp-meeting,  when 
her   health   was   entirely   prostrated.     They   thought 


LIFE  IN  THE   WHITE  HOUSE.  349 

that  the  change  of  scenes  and  the  smell  of  the  pine 
grove  might  aid  her  more  than  physicians.  "  And 
there,"  she  added,  "my  soul  was  quickened,  and  I  was 
led  to  see  how  tenderly  God  had  dealt  with  me,  and 
that  his  gracious  discipline  was  suited  to  make  me  a 
more  efficient  worker  in  his  vineyard,  if  I  only  would 
be  true.  From  that  time  I  have  never  even  doubted 
that  God  loves  me." 

"  Can  others  enjoy  a  similar  experience  ?"  the  Presi- 
dent inquired,  "or  is  yours  exceptional?" 

"  It  is  not  exceptional,  Mr.  President ;  it  is  just 
what  God  promises  to  all  who  are  willing  to  be  led  by 
His  will." 

"And  how  can  we  know  that  we  are  led  by  His 
will  ? " 

"Through  sincere,  earnest  prayer,"  replied  Mrs. 
Pomroy.  "  Prayer  has  been  everything  to  me.  '  Let 
him  that  lacketh  wisdom,  ask  of  God,  who  giveth 
liberally,  and  upbraideth  not/" 

Much  more  was  said  in  the  same  spirit,  when  the 
President  reverted  again  to  his  own  great  sorrow, — 
Willie  dead  and  "  Tad "  not  expected  to  live  until 
sunrise,  —  and  the  burden  of  his  country's  perils 
weighing  heavily  on  his  heart. 

"  Prayer  can  do  what  armies  cannot,"  suggested 
Mrs.  Pomroy ;  "  and  never  were  so  many  prayers 
offered  for  a  country  as  are  offered  for  ours,  and 
never  so  many  offered  for  a  ruler  as  are  offered  for 
you,  Mr.  President." 

"I  know  it,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln,  deeply  moved 
by  the  thought ;  "  and  it  is  great  encouragement  to 
me.     Our  cause  is  righteous,  and  I  do  believe  that 


35°       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

God  will  give  us  the  victory  ;  but  this  slaughtering  of 
men  is  dreadful  for  both  sides." 

Mrs.  Pomroy  had  proposed  that  he  should  retire  to 
an  adjoining  room  for  rest,  promising  that  she  would 
call  him  at  the  least  change  in  "Tad." 

"  Pray  for  me,"  he  said,  as  he  arose  to  leave  the 
/uom  ;  and,  looking  down  mournfully  upon  the  little 
sufferer,  he  added,  "  and  pray  for  him,  that  he  may  be 
spared,  if  it  is  God's  will." 

"And  you  pray  yourself,"  responded  Mrs.  Pomroy. 
"  There  is  nothing  like  prayer  in  trouble  :  do  you  not 
think  so  ? " 

"  I  surely  do,"  was  the  President's  reply,  as  he 
retired  with  weeping  eyes  and  aching  heart. 

Very  soon  Mrs.  Pomroy  heard  his  own  voice  dis- 
tinctly in  prayer,  commending  himself,  his  family  and 
his  country  to  God.  "  From  that  moment,"  she  says, 
"  I  felt  that  our  cause  would  triumph.  The  President 
interceding  with  God  for  it  assured  me." 

Scarcely  had  he  fallen  asleep  when  a  messenger 
arrived  with  a  telegram  from  Port  Hudson.  It  was 
carried  directly  to  his  room,  when  he  sprung  from  the 
bed,  and,  taking  it  to  the  door  of  the  room  where 
"Tad"  was  lying,  that  he  might  read  it  by  the  gas 
light,  his  eyes  ran  over  it. 

"  Good  news  !  good  news !  Mrs.  Pomroy ;  Port 
Hudson  is  ours  ! "  he  exclaimed,  forgetting  all  sorrow 
{or  the  moment. 

"There  is  nothing  like  prayer,  Mr.  President,"  re- 
sponded Mrs.  Pomroy. 

"Yes,  there  is,  praise,"  he  promptly  answered: 
H  Prayer  and  praise  must  po  together." 


LIFE   IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  35 1 

"Tad"  was  somewhat  improved  on  the  following  day 
and  he  continued  to  improve,  and  finally  recovered. 
But  Mr.  Lincoln  continued  watching  by  his  side  for 
three  days  and  nights  —  he  on  one  side  of  the  cot  and 
Mrs.  Pomeroy  on  the  other  —  leaving  only  at  brief 
intervals  to  recline  upon  the  lounge  or  bed.  His 
public  duties  were  left  to  Mr.  Seward  and  his  private 
secretary.  "  It  seemed  as  if  he  could  not  bear  to  leave 
'  Tad  '  for  a  moment,"  said  Mrs.  Pomeroy. 

On  the  morning  of  Willie's  funeral,  Mrs.  Pomeroy 
expressed  her  deep  sympathy  for  him,  and  called 
his  attention  to  the  many  prayers  going  up  for  him. 
"  I  am  glad  to  hear  that,"  he  answered,  wiping  his 
tears :  "  I  want  they  should  pray  for  me.  I  need 
their  prayers,  /  will  try  to  go  to  God  with  my  sorrows." 
Subsequently  he  said,  "  I  wish  I  had  that  childlike 
faith  you  speak  of,  and  I  trust  that  God  will  give  it  to 
me." 

On  the  second  night  of  Mrs.  Pomeroy's  care  of 
"  Tad  "  about  eleven  o'clock,  Mr.   Lincoln  remarked, 

"  You  don't  know  how  much  good  your  conversation 
did  me  last  night,  Mrs.  Pomeroy.  I  wish  you  would 
tell  me  your  remarkable  experience  again." 

She  complied  with  his  request,  and  rehearsed  the 
whole  of  it  over  again,  Mr.  Lincoln  interrupting  her 
occasionally  by  inquiries,  as  if  he  were  intent  upon 
learning  how  to  bear  his  own  heavy  burdens.  Still 
again,  on  the  third  night,  he  requested  another  re- 
hearsal of  that  Christian  experience.  Often  after- 
wards, when  riding  to  and  from  the  Soldiers'  Home,  or 
to  the  hospital  where  Mrs.  Pomeroy's  sick  soldier  boys 
were,  he  would  revert  to  that  experience,  and  put  some 


352        PIONEER  HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE 

question,  or  say,  "  It  did  me  so  much  good."  Once 
a  senator  was  going  to  the  Soldiers'  Home,  where 
Mrs.  Pomeroy  and  "Tad"  were  at  the  time;  and 
Mr.   Lincoln  said  to  him  :  — 

"  I  want  you  should  see  Mrs.  Pomeroy,  whose  con- 
versation did  me  so  much  good.  Go  and  introduce 
yourself  to  her,  and  tell  her  that  I  want  you  should 
hear  that  experience." 

At  another  time,  on  the  way  from  the  Soldiers' 
Home  to  the  Executive  Mansion,  he  said  to  Mrs.  Pome- 
/oy :  "I  don't  know  how  I  shall  ever  repay  you  for 
what  you  have  done  for  me.  If  I  live  through  the  war, 
and  retire  from  public  life,  I  hope  to  be  able  to  remu- 
nerate ycu  in  some  way." 

In  common  with  many  friends,  she  warned  him  one 
day  against  rebels  in  Washington  who  might  assassi- 
nate him,  when  he  replied : 

"  I  am  in  God's  hand  ;  let  Him  do  with  me  what 
seemeth  good  to  Him." 

He  possessed  his  mother's  old  Bible,  which  he  reaa 
so  much  in  his  boyhood,  and  he  was  wont  to  read 
it  daily,  usually  just  before  he  took  his  lunch.  He 
would  throw  himself  upon  the  lounge,  and  read  a  few 
moments.  One  day  Mrs.  Pomeroy  entered  his  office 
while  he  was  thus  reading  on  the  lounge. 

"  What  portion  of  the  Bible  do  you  like  best,  Mrs. 
Pomeroy?"  he  inquired. 

"The  psalms  are  my  favorite,"  Mrs.  Pomeroy  an- 
swered. 

"  Yes,  the  psalms  have  something  for  every  day  in 
the  week,  and  something  for  every  poor  fellow  like 
me,"  he  responded. 


LIFE  IN   THE  V/HITE  HOUSE.  353 

He  was  accustomed  to  carry  his  mother's  Bible  back 
and  forth  from  the  Soldiers'  Home,  preferring  to  read 
from  it  rather  than  use  another.  Speaking  of  that 
Bible  once,  he  added,  "  I  had  a  good  Christian  mother, 
and  her  prayers  have  followed  me  thus  far  through 
life."  Captain  Mix,  who  was  often  in  the  family,  says: 
—  "  Many  times  have  I  listened  to  our  most  eloquent 
preachers,  but  never  with  the  same  feeling  of  awe  and 
reverence,  as  when  our  Christian  President,  his  arm 
around  '  Tad,'  with  his  deep  earnest  tone,  each  morn 
ing  read  a  chapter  from  the  Bible." 

He  inquired  very  minutely  into  the  method  of 
speaking  with  sick  and  dying  soldiers  —  what  she  said 
to  them  —  how  they  answered  her  —  how  many  of 
them  became  Christians  ?  He  accompanied  her  many 
times  to  the  hospital  and  witnessed  her  effective  man- 
agement and  talked  with  the  soldiers  and  encouraged 
them.  On  learning  that  the  managers  of  the  hos- 
pital, who  were  Roman  Catholics,  had  forbidden  the 
Protestant  nurses  to  pray  with  the  soldiers,  or  read  the 
Bible  to  them,  he  promptly  removed  the  restriction, 
and  allowed  the  Christian  women  henceforth  to  hold 
prayer- meetings,  read  the  Bible  to  the  "boys"  and 
pray  with  them,  as  much  as  they  pleased,  adding :  — 
''  If  there  was  more  praying  and  less  swearing  it 
would  be  far  better  for  our  country,  and  we  all  need  to 
be  prayed  for,  officers  as  well  as  privates,  and  if  I  was 
near  death  I  think  I  should  like  to  hear  prayer." 

He  took  a  lady  to  the  Soldiers'  Home  in  his  carriage 
one  morning,  with  Mrs.  Pomeroy,  and  the  horses  be- 
came well-nigh  unmanageable  just  where  the  severe 
shower  of  the   previous  night  had  flooded  the   road. 


354       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

The  ladies  were  very  much  frightened,  and  Mr.  Lin- 
coln directed  the  driver  to  hold  one  of  the  horses  and 
the  footman  the  other,  while  he  opened  the  door  and 
jumped  out.  Stripping  up  his  pants  to  his  knees,  he 
hastily  brought  three  stones  large  enough  to  stand  up- 
on, and  placing  them  so  that  the  ladies  could  step 
upon  them,  from  one  to  the  other,  he  speedily  helped 
ihem  to  the  side-walk,  remarking  in  a  vein  of  humor, 
"  All  through  life  be  sure  you  put  your  feet  in  the 
right  place,  and  then  stand  firm"  Then,  looking 
down  upon  his  very  muddy  boots,  he  said:  —  "I  have 
always  heard  of  Washington  mud,  and  now  I  shall 
take  home  some  as  a  sample." 

We  have  given  somewhat  in  detail  these  incidents 
from  Mrs.  Pomeroy's  experience,  because  they  present 
so  clear  a  view  of  the  man.  His  simplicity,  tender- 
ness, affection,  frankness,  freedom  from  pride  and 
ostentation,  trust  in  Providence,  and  strong  religious 
convictions,  —  all  appear  unmistakably  in  these  inci- 
dents that  cluster  about  his  stay  in  the  White  House 
and  Soldiers'  Home. 

Willie  died  on  Thursday,  and,  on  the  recurrence  of 
that  day  for  several  weeks,  Mr.  Lincoln  shut  himself 
up  in  his  room  and  indulged  in  excessive  grief.  Near 
friends  spoke  to  Dr.  Vinton  of  New  York,  who  was 
visiting  at  Washington,  of  this  practice,  and  urged  him 
to  see  the  President.  Accordingly  he  called  upon  him 
and  told  him  frankly  that  it  was  sinful  to  indulge  in 
such  grief. 

"  Your  son  is  alive  in  Paradise,"  said  Dr.  Vinton. 

"  Alive  !  Alive!  "  exclaimed  the  President,  starting 
to  his  feet ;  "  surely  you  mock  me." 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  355 

"  No,  my  dear  sir,  believe  me ;  Christ  himself  de 
clares  it." 

Mr.  Lincoln  looked  at  him  a  moment,  then  throwing 
his  arms  about  the  clergyman's  neck,  and  laying  his 
iiead  upon  his  shoulders,  sobbed  aloud,  repeating : 
"Alive?     Alive?" 

Dr  Vinton  comforted  him  by  the  words  of  Christ 
and  for  an  hour,  labored  and  prayed  with  him,  closing 
the  interview  by  telling  the  President :  "  I  have  a 
sermon  upon  this  subject  which  I  think  might  interest 
you." 

"  Do  send  it  to  me  as  early  as  possible,"  Mr.  Lin- 
coln replied.  Dr.  Vinton  forwarded  the  sermon,  and 
the  sorrowing  President  read  it  over  and  over,  and 
then  had  it  copied  that  he  might  enjoy  the  reading  of 
it  yet  more.  A  member  of  the  family  says :  —  "  From 
that  time  Mr.  Lincoln's  views  in  relation  to  spiritual 
things  were  changed." 

Mr.  Lincoln  was  a  devoted  father,  and  his  great 
love  for  his  children  appeared  in  the  White  House  in 
its  tender  simplicity,  as  it  did  elsewhere.  No  matter 
what  dignitaries  were  about  him,  paternal  affection 
asserted  itself  without  let  or  hindrance.  The  Hon. 
W.  D.  Kelley,  of  Philadelphia,  says  :  — 

"  His  intercourse  with  his  family  was  as  beautiful  as 
that  with  his  friends.  I  think  that  father  never  loved 
his  children  more  fondly  than  he.  The  President 
never  seemed  grander  in  my  sight  than  when,  stealing 
upon  him  in  the  evening,  I  would  find  him  with  a  book 
open  before  him,  as  he  is  represented  in  the  popular 
photograph,  with  little  Tad  beside  him.  There  were 
of  course  a  great  many  curious  books  sent  to  him,  and 


356       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

it  seemed  one  of  the  special  delights  of  his  life  to  open 
those  books  at  such  an  hour  that  his  boy  could  stand 
beside  him,  and  they  could  talk  as  he  turned  over  the 
pages,  the  father  thus  giving  to  the  son  a  portion  of 
that  care  and  attention  of  which  he  was  ordinarily  de 
prived  by  the  duties  of  office  pressing  upon  him." 

Mr.  Carpenter  writes  : —  "  No  matter  who  was  with 
the  President,  or  how  intently  he  was  absorbed,  little  Tad 
was  always  welcome.  At  the  time  of  which  I  write,  he 
was  eleven  years  old,  and  of  course  rapidly  passing 
from  childhood  into  youth.  Suffering  much  from  an 
infirmity  of  speech  which  developed  in  his  infancy,  he 
seemed  on  this  account  especially  dear  to  his  father. 

*  One  touch  of  nature  makes  the  whole  world  kin/ 
and  it  was  an  impressive  and  affecting  sight  to  me  to 
see  the  burdened  President  lost  for  the  time  being  in 
the  affectionate  parent,  as  he  would  take  the  little 
fellow  in  his  arms,  upon  the  withdrawal  of  visitors,  and 
caress  him  with  all  the  fondness  of  a  mother  for  the 
babe  upon  her  bosom  !  " 

Several  weeks  after  the  death  of  Willie,  Mr.  Lincoln, 
with  several  members  of  his  Cabinet,  spent  a  few  days 
at  Fortress  Monroe,  watching  military  operations  upon 
i:he  Peninsula.  He  improved  his  spare  time  there  in 
reading    Shakespeare.       One    day    he    was    reading 

*  Hamlet,"  when  he  called  to  his  private  secretary :-— 

"  Come  here,  colonel :  I  want  to  read  you  a  pas 
sage."  The  colonel  responded,  when  the  President 
read  the  discussion  on  ambition  between  Hamlet  and 
his  courtiers,  and  the  soliloquy,  in  which  conscience 
debates  about  a  future  state.  Then  he  read  passages 
from  "Macbeth,"  and  finally  opened  to  the  third  act  of 


LIFE  IN   THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  35/ 


"  King  John,"  where  Constance  bewails  her  lost  boy. 
Closing  the  book,  and  recalling  the  words,  — 

"  And,  father  cardinal,  I  have  heard  you  say 
That  we  shall  see  and  know  our  friends  in  heaven  : 
If  that  be  true  I  shall  see  my  boy  again," — 

Mr.  Lincoln  said  :  "  Colonel,  did  you  ever  dream  of  a 
lost  friend,  and  feel  that  you  were  holding  sweet 
communion  with  that  friend,  and  yet  have  a  sad  con- 
sciousness that  it  was  not  reality  ?  — just  so  I  dream 
of  my  boy  Willie."  Overcome  with  emotion,  he 
dropped  his  head  on  the  table,  and  sobbed  aloud. 

Beautiful  example  of  paternal  love  in  the  highest 
place  of  the  land  !  The  millions  of  fathers  over  whom 
he  ruled  found  in  him  a  worthy  father  to  imitate ! 

President  Lincoln's  humor  often  exposed  him  to 
criticisi  His  frequent  stories  often  elicited  censure. 
Persons  who  did  not  understand  him  charged  him 
with  being  light  and  trifling,  when  sadness  and  sorrow 
were  more  becoming.  There  was  no  ground  for  this 
censure.  Mr.  Lincoln  told  stories  in  the  White  House 
just  as  he  did  anywhere  else.  The  simplicity  of  his 
character  led  him  to  be,  when  President,  just  what  he 
was  as  a  friend  and  neighbor.  Then,  he  told  stories 
for  two  reasons.  First,  he  told  them  to  point  and  en- 
force the  subject  in  hand.  Mr.  Herndon,  his  law-part- 
ner for  many  years,  remarks  upon  this  peculiarity  of 
the  man  :  — 

"  It  is  said  that  Newton  saw  an  apple  fall  to  the 
ground  from  a  tree,  and  beheld  the  law  of  the  universe 
in  thai  fall  ;  Shakespeare  saw  human  nature  in  the 
laugh  of  a  man  ;  Professor  Owen  saw  the  animal  in  its 


358       PIONEER  HOME    TO    WHITE  HOUSE. 

claw ;  and  Spencer  saw  the  evolution  of  the  universe 
in  the  growth  of  a  seed.  Nature  was  suggestive  to  all 
these  men.  Mr.  Lincoln  no  less  saw  philosophy  in  a 
story,  and  a  schoolmaster  in  a  joke.  .  .  .  The  world, 
fact,  man,  principle,  — -  all  had  their  powers  of  sugges^ 
tion  to  his  susceptible  soul.  They  continually  put  him 
in  mind  of  something.  He  was  often  perplexed  to 
give  expression  to  his  ideas :  first,  because  he  was  not 
master  of  the  English  language  ;  and,  secondly,  because 
there  were  no  words  in  it  containing  the  coloring, 
shape,  exactness,  power,  and  gravity,  of  his  ideas.  He 
was  frequently  at  a  loss  for  a  word,  and  hence  was 
compelled  to  resort  to  stories,  maxims,  and  jokes  to 
embody  his  idea,  that  it  might  be  comprehended. 

"  But  more  and  better  than  that,  in  the  White  House 
he  found/  recreation  and  relief  in  story-telling.  He 
told  them  that  he  read  Shakespeare  and  the  '  Nasby 
Papers,'  to  help  him  endure  the  labors  of  his  official 
position.  He  indulged  in  wit  and  humor  when  he  felt 
more  like  crying.  Indeed,  he  indulged  them,  often,  in 
order  to  keep  from  crying.  As  he  said  to  a  member 
of  Congress,  when  he  was  greatly  distressed  for  the 
country.  'Were  it  not  for  this  occasional  vent  I 
should  die/  He  kept  a  copy  of  'Nasby  Papers'  in 
his  desk,  as  an  antidote  for  depression.  He  found  re- 
lief in  their  perusal.  He  once  said  to  a  friend,  '  I  think 
of  writing  to  'Petroleum'  to  come  down  here,  and  I 
shall  tell  him,  if  he  will  impart  his  talent  to  me,  I  will 
swap  places  with  him/  " 

Speaking  of  this  peculiarity  of  the  President,  a  Con- 
gressman said,  "//  is  his  life  preserver''  He  was  se- 
verely criticized  for  it  by  the  journals.     Many  stories 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE,  359 

and  jokes  were  ascribed  to  him,  which  he  never  told. 
A  volume  of  them  was  issued  in  New  York,  under  the 
title,  "  Old  Abe's  Jokes."  A  friend  submitted  a  copy 
of  the  work  to  him,  with  the  request  that  he  should  re 
port  how  many  of  the  stories  were  genuine.  His  report 
was  "  six  "out  of  the  whole  number.  Still,  the  attacks 
upon  him  only  elicited  more  wit.  After  examining  a 
gun  so  constructed  as  to  prevent  the  escape  of  gas,  he 
remarked,  "  I  really  believe  this  does  what  it  is  repre- 
sented to  do.  But  do  any  of  you  know  of  any  machine 
or  invention,  for  preventing  the  escape  of  gas  from 
newspaper  establishments  ? "  At  a  time  when  the  pub- 
lic journals  teemed  with  assaults  upon  him,  for  alleged 
acts  and  sayings  that  never  occurred,  Mrs.  Secretary 
Welles  called  attention  to  certain  reports.  "The  pa- 
pers are  not  always  reliable"  responded  one  present. 
"That  is  to  say,  Mrs.  Welles,"  interjected  Mr.  Lincoln, 
"  they  lie,  and  then  they  re-lie  !  "  He  "  could  bear  cen- 
sure," as  he  said,  "but  not  insult."  A  friend  pro- 
posed that  he  should  contradict  a  particular  false  report 
in  a  leading  journal ;  but  he  replied,  "  Oh,  no  ;  if  I 
were  to  try  to  read,  much  less  answer,  all  the  attacks 
made  on  me,  this  shop  might  as  well  be  closed  for  any 
other  business.  I  do  the  very  best  I  know  how, — • 
the  very  best  I  can  ;  and  I  mean  to  keep  doing  so 
until  the  end.  If  the  end  brings  me  out  all  right,  what 
is  said  igainst  me  won't  amount  to  anything.  If  the 
end  brings  me  out  wrong,  ten  angels  swearing  I  was 
right  would  make  no  difference." 

His  grand  magnanimity  never  appeared  to  greater 
advantage  than  it  did  when,  after  all  his  trials  with 
General  McClellan,  before  he  removed  him,  and  after 


360        PIONEER   HOME    TO   WHITE   HOUSE. 


he  had  facetiously  remarked  that  he  "  would  like  tc 
borrow  his  army  if  he  had  no  use  for  it,"  and  given  as 
a  reason  why  the  General  did  not  reply  to  the  "  Chi- 
cago letter,"  "he  is  entrenching"  —  he  remarked  tc 
mother,  "  so  pleasant  and  scholarly  a  gentleman  can 
never  fail  to  secure  personal  friends.     In  fact, 

'  Even  his  failings  lean  to  virtue^  side.'  " 

Also,  when  Stonewall  Jackson  fell  in  battle,  and  the 
Washington  Chronicle  spoke  well  of  him  as  a  brave 
soldier  but  mistaken  man,  Mr.  Lincoln  wrote  to  the 
editor :  — 

"  I  honor  you  for  your  generosity  to  one  who,  though 
contending  against  us  in  a  guilty  cause,  was  neverthe- 
less a  gallant  man.  Let  us  forget  his  sins  over  his 
fresh-made  grave." 

His  humor,  kindness,  and  magnanimity  appeared  to 
go  hand  in  hand,  presenting  one  of  the  most  unique, 
genial,  and  remarkable  characters  ever  found  in  public 
life. 

In  this  connection  his  art  of  putting  things  deserves 
attention.  Mr.  Lincoln  understood  it  to  perfection  ; 
and  these  remarkable  sallies  often  exposed  him  to  se 
/ere  criticisms.  For  example,  the  report  of  the  cap- 
ture of  a  Union  brigadier  and  squad  of  cavalry,  near 
Fairfax  Court  House,  by  rebel  guerillas,  was  brought 
to  him.     The  brigadier  had  proved  to  be  incompetent. 

"  I  am  very  sorry  to  lose  the  horses,"  responded  the 
President,  on  receipt  of  the  news. 

"What  dc  you  mean?"  inquired  his  informant, 
somewhat  startled  by  his  seemingly  heartless  words. 

"  Why,"  rejoined  the  President,  "  I  can  make  a  bet- 


LIFE  IN   THE   WHITE   HOUSE.  ,501 

l€t   brigadier  any  day  ;  but  those  horses  cost  the  gov 
ernment  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars  apiece." 

It  was  customary  for  the  Secretary  of  State  to  write 
the  President's  speeches  to  foreign  ministers,  and,  per- 
haps, home  delegations.  A  messenger  entered  the 
President's  room  one  day,  saying,  "  The  Secretary  has 
sent  the  speech  you  are  to  make  to-clay  to  the  Swiss 
minister."  Mr.  Lincoln  received  it,  smiling,  and  then, 
as  if  to  ridicule  the  practice,  and  intimate  that  he 
could  make  his  own  speeches  he  remarked,  loud 
enough  for  all  present  to  hear  :  — 

"  Oh,  this  is  a  speech  Mr.  Seward  has  written  for 
me,  is  it  ?  I  guess  I  will  try  it  before  these  gentle- 
men and  see  how  it  goes."  '.  \e  proceeded  to  read  it 
aloud,  in  a  waggish  manner,  ana  remarked,  as  he  closed 
it,  "  There,  I  like  that.     It  has  the  merit  of  originality." 

\  delegation  from  the  West  waited  upon  him  to 
protest  against  some  of  his  measures.  After  having 
listened  to  their  complaints,  he  answered  :  — 

"  Gentlemen,  suppose  all  the  property  you  were 
worth  was  in  gold,  and  you  had  put  it  into  the  hands  of 
Blondin  to  carry  across  the  Niagara  river  on  a  rope, 
would  you  shake  the  cable,  or  keep  shouting  out  to 
him,  '  Blondin,  stand  up  straighter — Blondin,  stoop  a 
little  more — go  a  little  faster — lean  a  little  more  to 
the  north  —  lean  a  little  more  to  the  south.'  No,  you 
would  hold  your  breath  as  well  as  your  tongue,  and  keep 
your  hands  off  until  he  was  safe  over.  The  govern 
ment  are  carrying  an  immense  weight.  Untold 
treasures  are  in  their  hands.  They  are  doing  the 
very  best  they  can.  Don't  badger  them.  Keep 
silence,  and  we  will  get  you  safe  across." 


$62       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Another  delegation  came  to  open  his  eyes  to  the 
"breakers  ahead."  Mr.  Lincoln  thought  they  magni- 
fied the  perils  ;  and  so  he  told  a  story.  "  You  remind 
me  of  the  schoolboy,"  he  said,  "  who  found  difficulty 
in  pronouncing  the  Scripture  names;  '  Shadrach, 
Meshach,  and  Abednego/  The  teacher  had  drilled 
him  repeatedly  in  the  pronunciation  of  these  names. 
One  day  the  teacher  purposely  took  the  same  lesson  in 
Bible  reading,  and  managed  to  have  this  boy  read  the 
passages,  containing  *hese  names,  again.  As  the  dull 
pupil  came  to  them,  he  stopped,  looked  up,  and  said : 
*  Teacher,  there's  them  three  fellers  ag'in.'  " 

A  clergyman  remarked  to  him  :  "  The  Lord  is  on 
our  side." 

"  I  am  not  at  all  concerned  about  that,"  replied  Mr. 
Lincoln  ;  "  for  I  know  that  the  Lord  is  always  on  the 
side  of  the  right.  But  it  is  my  constant  anxiety  and 
prayer  that  /  and  this  nation  should  be  on  the  Lord's 
side." 

A  whole  volume  of  similar  incidents  might  be  fur- 
nished, not  one  of  them  showing  that  Mr.  Lincoln  was 
thoughtless  and  trifling  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  that 
it  was  his  unique,  peculiar  and  pat  way  of  putting  the 
case  clearly  before  those  who  approached  him.  In  his 
felicitous  handling  of  a  subject,  a  story  or  witticism 
Was  often  more  convincing  than  argument.  For  this 
reason  he  employed  them.  The  genius  and  real  ability 
of  the  man  often  cropped  out  through  this  mode  of 
speaking,  so  peculiarly  his  own.  One  of  our  best 
writers  put  the  literary  character  of  President  Lincoln 
and  his  wonderful  tact  so  tersely  before  the  people  that 
we  quote  it  here.     It  was  penned  before  the  death  of 


LIFE  IN   THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  363 

Mr.  Lincoln ;  and  the  paragraph  is  not  only  a  faithful  por- 
trait of  the  man,  but  the  style  of  the  composition  is  more 
like  his  than  any  piece  of  composition  we  have  seen  :  — 

"  His  questions  are  answers,  and  his  answers  questions ;  his 
messes  prophecies,  his  fulfilment  ever  beyond  his  promise ; 
honest  yet  shrewd  ;  simple,  yet  reticent ;  heavy,  yet  energetic  ; 
jever  despairing,  never  sanguine  ;  careless  in  forms,  conscientious 
in  essentials  ;  never  sacrificing  a  good  servant  once  trusted, 
never  deserting  a  good  principle  once  adopted  ;  not  afraid  of  new 
ideas,  nor  despising  old  ones  ;  improving  opportunities  to  confess 
mistakes  ;  ready  to  learn  ;  getting  at  facts  ;  doing  nothing  wnen 
he  knows  not  what  to  do  ;  hesitating  at  nothing,  when  he  sees 
the  right ;  lacking  the  recognized  qualities  of  a  party  leader,  and 
leading  his  party  as  no  other  man  can  ;  sustaining  his  political 
enemies  in  Missouri  in  their  defeat,  sustaining  his  political  friends 
in  Maryland  in  their  victory ;  conservative  in  his  sympathies, 
and  radical  in  his  acts  ;  Socratic  in  his  style,  and  Baconian  in  his 
method  ;  his  religion  consisting  in  truthfulness,  temperance ;  ask- 
ing good  people  to  pray  for  him,  and  publicly  acknowledging  in 
events  the  hand  of  God,  —  yet  he  stands  before  you  as  the  type 
of  '  Brother  Jonathan,'  a  not  perfect  man,  and  yet  more  precious 
than  fine  gold." 

Mr.  Lincoln,  like  Washington,  was  continually  show- 
ing, without  design  on  his  part,  his  sincere  trust  in 
Providence,  as  well  as  his  great  respect  for  the  insti- 
tutions of  Christianity.  After  a  serious  defeat  of  the 
Union  forces  near  Washington,  he  remarked  to  a  friend, 
'  I  have  done  the  best  I  could.  I  have  asked  God  to 
guide  me,  and  now  I  must  leave  the  event  with  him." 
At  another  time,  two  hundred  members  of  the  Chris* 
tian  Commission  called  upon  him,  and  George  H.  Stu- 
art spoke,  in  their  behalf,  of  the  debt  of  gratitude  the 
public  owed  him.     Mr.  Lincoln  replied  :  — 

"  My  friends  :  You  owe  me  no  gratitude  fc  r  what  I 


364       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

have  done;  and  I  —  "  (and  here  he  hesitated  as  if  he 
feared  being  misunderstood  in  what  he  was  about  to 
say) — -"and  I,  I  may  say,  owe  you  no  gratitude  for 
what  you  have  done;  just  as,  in  a  sense,  we  owe  nc 
gratitude  to  the  men  who  have  fought  our  battles  for 
is.  I  trust  that  this  has  been  for  us  all  a  work  of 
duty.  All  the  gratitude  is  due  to  the  great  Giver  of 
all  good." 

At  another  time  he  replied  to  Dr.  J.  T.  Duryea  and 
other  members  of  the  Commission  as  follows  :  — 

"If  it  were  not  for  my  belief  in  an  over-ruling  Prov- 
idence, it  would  be  difficult  for  me,  in  the  midst  of 
such  complications,  to  keep  my  reason  on  its  seat. 
But  I  am  confident  that  the  Almighty  has  his  plans, 
and  will  work  them  out ;  and,  whether  we  see  it  or 
not,  they  will  be  the  wisest  and  best  for  us.  I  have 
always  taken  counsel  of  Him,  and  referred  to  Him  my 
plans,  and  have  never  adopted  a  course  of  proceeding 
without  being  assured,  as  far  as  I  could  be,  of  his  ap- 
probation." 

At  another  time  he  said  to  friends,  "  I  have  been 
driven  many  times  to  my  knees  by  the  overwhelming 
conviction  that  I  had  nowhere  else  to  go."  And 
again,  "  I  should  be  the  most  presumptuous  blockhead 
apon  this  footstool,  if  I  for  one  day  thought  that  I 
ixmld  discharge  the  duties  which  have  come  upon  me 
since  I  came  into  this  place,  without  the  aid  and 
enlightenment  of  One  who  is  wiser  and  stronger  thaia 
all  others." 

In  the  early  part  of  the  war  he  issued  an  order  fur 
the  better  observance  of  the  Sabbath  in  the  army.  In 
the   order  he   said :   "  The  importance   for  man  and 


UFE  IN   THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  365 

oeast  of  the  prescribed  weekly  rest,  the  sacred  rights 
of  Christian  soldiers  and  sailors,  a  becoming  deference 
to  the  best  sentiment  of  a  Christian  people,  and  a  due 
regard  for  the  Divine  Will,  demand  that  Sunday  labor 
In  the  army  and  navy  be  reduced  to  the  measure  of 
strict  necessity." 

The  prevalence  of  profane  swearing  among  cht 
soldiers  was  rebuked  in  the  same  order ;  and  he  said : 
i:  The  discipline  and  character  of  the  national  forces 
should  not  suffer,  nor  the  cause  they  defend  be 
imperilled  by  the  profanation  of  the  day  or  name 
of  the  Most  High."  And  he  enforced  the  order 
by  the  example  of  Washington,  saying:  — "  At  this 
time  of  public  distress,  adopting  the  words  of  Washing- 
ton in  1776,  '  men  may  find  enough  to  do  in  the  service 
of  God  and  their  country  without  abandoning  them- 
selves to  vice  and  immorality/  The  first  general 
order  issued  by  the  Father  of  his  Country  after  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  indicates  the  spirit  in 
which  our  institutions  were  founded  and  should  ever 
be  defended :  *  The  General  hopes  and  trusts  that 
every  officer  and  man  will  endeavor  to  live  and  act  as 
becomes  a  Christian  soldier  defending  the  dearest 
rights  and  liberties  of  his  country/  " 

Intemperance  in  the  army  he  deeply  deplored 
Both  by  word  and  pen  he  sought  to  expose  the  peril? 
of  drinking  habits  among  officers  and  privates,  es 
pecially  the  former.  His  own  example  enforced  his 
counsels  with  great  power.  For  he  continued  to  be  the 
same  uncompromising  teetotaller  at  Washington  that  he 
had  been  elsewhere.  The  White  House  was  run  upon 
teetotal  principles,  as  strictly  scr  as  his  humble  home 


366       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

in  Springfield.  In  Washington  circles,  where  the  wine 
cup  went  round,  he  was  always  passed  by  out  of  re* 
spect  to  his  temperance  principles.  At  one  time  a 
delegation  of  the  Sons  of  Temperance  waited  on  him. 
In  his  reply,  he  said  :  "  When  I  was  a  young  man. 
long  ago,  before  the  Sons  of  Temperance,  as  an  organ- 
ization, had  an  existence,  I,  in  my  humble  way,  made 
temperance  speeches ;  and  I  think  I  can  say  that 
my  example  has  never  belied  the  position  I  then  took." 
And  when  he  read  a  petition  from  the  women  of 
Massachusetts,  praying  for  the  suppression  of  intem- 
perance in  the  army,  he  exclaimed :  "  Dear,  good 
souls!  if  they  only  knew  how  much  I  have  tried  to 
remedy  this  great  evil,  they  would  be  rejoiced." 

Notwithstanding  his  great  weight  of  labors  for  the 
country,  President  Lincoln  did  not  wholly  neglect 
literary  studies.  He  found  necessary  recreation  in  his 
books,  and  both  poetry  and  prose  often  brought  relief 
to  him  in  seasons  of  depression  and  exhaustion.  A 
California  lady,  who,  with  several  other  women,  visited 
the  cemetery  at  the  Soldiers'  Home  in  company  with 
Mr.  Lincoln,  writes  :  — 

"  While  we  stood  in  the  soft  evening  air,  watching 
the  faint  trembling  of  the  long  tendrils  of  waving  wil- 
low, and  feeling  the  dewy  coolness  that  was  flung  out 
by  the  old  oaks  above  us,  Mr.  Lincoln  joined  us,  and 
stood  silent,  too,  taking  in  the  scene. 

" '  How  sleep  the  brave  who  sink  to  rest 
By  all  their  country's  wishes  blest,'  — 

he  said  softly. 

"  There  was  something  so  touching  in  the  picture 


LIFE   IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE,  367 

opened  before  us,  —  the  nameless  graves,  the  solemn 
quiet,  the  tender  twilight  air,  but  more  particularly 
our  own  feminine  disposition  to  be  easily  melted,  I 
suppose,  —  that  it  made  us  cry  as  if  we  stood  beside 
the  tomb  of  our  own  dead,  and  gave  point  to  the  lines 
he  quoted  :  — 

"  '  And  women  o'er  the  graves  shall  weep, 
Where  nameless  heroes  calmly  sleep.'  " 

One  day  he  surprised  some  of  his  most  intimate 
friends  by  his  very  just,  discriminating  remarks  upon 
some  of  the  plays  of  Shakespeare. 

"  There  is  one  passage  in  the  play  of  '  Hamlet/  "  he 
said,  "  which  is  very  apt  to  be  slurred  over  by  the  actor, 
or  omitted  altogether,  which  seems  to  me  the  choicest 
of  the  play.  It  is  the  soliloquy  of  the  king,  after  the 
murder.  It  always  struck  me  as  one  of  the  finest 
touches  in  the  world/ ' 

Then,  with  still  more  surprise,  his  friends  witnessed 
his  truly  dramatic  exhibition  of  the  scene,  as  he 
recited  the  whole  passage  of  nearly  forty  lines,  begin- 
ning:— 

"  Oh,  my  offence  is  rank,  it  smells  to  heaven  ; 
It  hath  the  primal  eldest  curse  upon  it, 
A  brother's  murder  !  " 

He  recited  it  from  memory,  throwing  himself  into 
the  scene  with  remarkable  abandon  and  tact.  TheiT 
he  went  on  : — 

"The  opening  of  the  play  of  'King  Richard  III/ 
seems  to  me  often  entirely  misapprehended.  It  is 
quite  common  for  an  actor  to  come  upon  the  stage, 
and,  in  a  sophomoric  style,  to  begin  with  a  flourish  :-- 


368        PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


'  Now  is  the  winter  of  oar  discontent 
Made  glorious  summer  by  this  sun  of  York, 
And  all  the  clouds  that  lowered  upon  our  house, 
In  the  deep  bosom  of  the  ocean  buried  ! ' 

"Now,"  said  he,  "this  is  all  wrong.  Richard,  yoi, 
remember,  had  been,  and  was  then,  plotting  the  de 
struction  of  his  brothers,  to  make  room  for  himself 
Outwardly  the  most  loyal  to  the  newly  crowned  king5 
secretly  he  could  scarcely  contain  his  impatience  at 
the  obstacles  still  in  the  way  of  his  own  elevation. 
He  appears  upon  the  stage,  just  after  the  crowning  ot 
Edward,  burning  with  repressed  hate  and  jealousy. 
The  prologue  is  the  utterance  of  the  most  intense 
bitterness  and  satire." 

Then,  assuming  the  character,  perhaps  without  de 
sign,  he  repeated  Richard's  soliloquy  with  so  much 
effect,  that  Mr.  Carpenter,  who  was  present,  says  :  — 
"  It  seemed  like  a  new  creation  to  me.  Though  fa- 
miliar with  the  passage  from  boyhood,  I  can  truly  say 
that  never  till  that  moment  had  I  fully  appreciated  its 
spirit." 

A  delegation  of  the  "Christian  Commission  "  waited 
upon  him,  and,  in  reply  to  their  address,  he  said  :  — 

"  I  desire,  also,  to  add  to  what  I  have  said,  that 
there  is  one  association  whose  object  and  motives  I 
have  never  heard  in  any  degree  impugned  or  ques- 
tioned [a  sly  rebuke  at  the  unjust  criticisms  and  fault- 
finding that  prevailed]  ;  and  that  is  the  '  Christian 
Commission/  And,  as  Shakespeare  says,"  he  added, 
"that  is  a  record,  gentlemen,  of  which  you  may  justly 
be  proud."  Then,  as  if  to  correct  himself,  he  re- 
marked, "  I  believe,  however,  it  is  'Jack  Falstaff '  whc 


LIFE  IN   THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  369 

talks  about  'villainy/  though,  of  course,  Shakespeare 
is  responsible." 

The  particular  circumstances  of  the  country,  or 
some  phase  of  his  personal  experience,  appear  to  have 
been  the  occasion  generally  of  these  and  kindred  drafts 
upon  his  literary  resources. 

N.  P.  Willis,  the  poet,  was  riding  with  him  one  day. 
when  some  remark  or  scene  drew  out  the  following 
from  the  poet's  "  Parrhasius"  : 

"  Oh,  if  there  were  no  better  hopes  than  these  — 
Were  there  no  palm  beyond  a  feverish  fame,  — 
If  the  proud  wealth  flung-  back  upon  the  heart 
Must  canker  in  its  coffers,  —  if  the  links 
Falsehood  has  broken  will  unite  no  more  ; 
If  the  deep-yearning  love,  that  has  not  found 
Its  like  in  the  cold  world,  must  waste  in  tears  \ 
If  truth,  and  fervor,  and  devotedness, 
Finding  no  worthy  altar,  must  return 
And  die  of  their  own  fulness ;  if  beyond 
The  grave  there  is  no  heaven  in  whose  wide  air 
The  spirit  may  find  room,  and  in  the  love 
Of  whose  bright  habitants  the  lavish  heart 
May  spend  itself,  —  what  thrice-?nock 'd  fools  are  we  /  " 

Mr.  Willis  was  both  surprised  and  delighted  with 
this  evidence  of  familiarity  with  his  writings,  and  the 
feandsome  compliment  so  gracefully  tendered. 

We  do  not  design  to  speak  at  length  of  Mr.  Lin- 
coln's mental  ability  ;  that  has  appeared,  incidentally, 
irom  the  beginning  of  our  story.  Enough  ha?  been 
quoted  from  his  lip  and  pen  to  prove  that  Senator 
Trumbull's  brief  tribute  was  not  exaggerated,  "  He  is 
a  giant ;  and  without  the  prefix  (  Little '  to  it,  a  giant 
tn  intellect  as  well  as  in  stature."    In  the  light  of  what 


370       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


has  been  said,  the  words  of  that  noted  Englishman, 
Goldwin  Smith,  are  pertinent  :  "  He  met  the  most 
terrible  of  all  emergencies  with  ability  and  self-posses- 
sion, as  well,  probably,  as  it  would  have  been  met  by 
any  European  sovereign  or  statesman  whom  you  could 
ntamer 

However,  this  chapter  should  not  close  without  his 
eloquent  and  beautiful  address  at  the  dedication  of  the 
national  cemetery  at  Gettysburg,  November  18,  1863. 
Its  originality  and  classic  diction  must  commend  it  to 
the  favorable  consideration  of  the  ripest  scholars  :  — . 

"  Four  score  and  seven  years  ago,  our  fathers  brought  forth 
upon  this  continent  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  Liberty,  and  dedi- 
cated to  the  proposition  that  all  men  are  created  equal.  Now 
we  are  engaged  in  a  great  civil  war,  testing  whether  that  nation, 
or  any  nation  so  conceived  and  so  dedicated,  can  long  endure. 
We  are  met  on  a  great  battle-field  of  that  war.  We  are  met  to 
dedicate  a  portion  of  it  as  the  final  resting-place  of  those  who 
here  gave  their  lives  that  that  nation  might  live.  It  is  altogether 
fitting  and  proper  that  we  should  do  this. 

"  But  in  a  larger  sense,  we  cannot  dedicate,  we  cannot  conse- 
crate, we  cannot  hallow  this  ground.  The  brave  men,  living  and 
dead,  who  struggled  here,  have  consecrated  it  far  above  our 
power  to  add  or  detract.  The  world  will  little  note,  nor  long 
remember  what  we  say  here  ;  but  it  can  never  forget  what  they 
did  here.  It  is  for  us,  the  living,  rather  to  be  dedicated  here  to 
the  unfinished  work  that  they  have  thus  far  so  nobly  carried  on 
It  is  rather  for  us  here  to  be  dedicated  to  the  great  task  remain- 
ing before  us  —  that  from  these  honored  dead  we  take  increased 
devotion  to  the  cause  for  which  they  here  gave  the  last  ful[ 
measure  of  devotion,  —  that  we  here  highly  resolve  that  the  dead 
shall  not  have  died  in  vain,  that  the  nation  shall,  under  God, 
have  a  new  birth  of  freedom,  and  that  the  government  of  the 
people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the  people,  shall  not  perish  from 
the  earth." 


LIFE  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  37 1 

We  have  intentionally  omitted  President  Lincoln's 
care  of  the  soldiers  and  colored  race  during  his  life  in 
the  White  House,  that  we  might  devote  a  chapter  to 
each  subject,  both  on  account  of  the  intrinsic  impor- 
tance of  each,  and  the  clear  and  interesting  view  of 
his  character  which  they  afford. 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

HIS   GREAT  INTEREST   IN   SOLDIERS, 

ROM  the  time  of  President  Lincoln' j  first 
call  for  troops,  his  life  in  the  White  House 
brought  him  into  intimate  relations  with 
Union  soldiers.  At  once  he  bestowed  upon 
them  his  most  tender  regard,  which  they  reciprocated 
with  kindred  heartiness.  He  was  called  by  the  endear- 
ing name  of  "Father  Abraham"  in  the  army;  and 
they  were  called  by  him  in  the  White  House,  "the 
boys."  Our  presentation  of  his  public  career  would 
be  very  deficient  without  special  attention  to  his 
fatherly  service  in  their  behalf.  The  controlling 
thought  of  his  mind  on  this  subject  was  expressed 
in  the  following  words  : 

"  This  extraordinary  war  in  which  we  are  engaged 
falls  heavily  upon  all  classes  of  people,  but  the  most 
heavily  upon  the  soldier.  For  it  has  been  said,  'all  that 
a  man  hath  will  he  give  for  his  life '  ;  and,  while  all 
contribute  of  their  substance,  the  soldier  puts  his  life 
at  stake,  and  often  yields  it  up  in  his  country's  cause. 
Phe  highest  merit,  then,  is  due  to  the  soldier  ! " 
He  spoke  somewhat  from  experience.  His  brief 
service  in  the  "  Black  Hawk  War,"  where  the  provisions 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        37  J 


(or  personal  comfort  were  small,  made  him  familiar 
■vith  the  hardships  of  soldier-life.  He  knew  from  per- 
sonal experience  how  many  and  great  privations  are 
inseparable  from  army  service  ;  and  no  doubt  this 
knowledge  intensified  the  natural  love  in  his  heart  for 
the  loyal  and  patriotic  "  boys  in  blue." 

Some  public  men  claimed  that  the  President  ought 
not  to  be  interrupted  and  annoyed  by  so  many  applica- 
tions from  soldiers  and  their  friends,  —  that  some  one 
of  the  military  commissions,  or  a  special  one,  should 
relieve  him  of  this  burden.  But  he  would  consent  to 
no  such  arrangement.  The  "  boys  *  belonged  to  his 
family,  and  he  would  enjoy  a  fatherly  watch  over  them. 
There  was  reason  for  the  suggestion,  since  his  daily 
duties  as  President  occupied  every  moment  of  his 
time,  and,  as  we  have  seen,  worried  and  wearied  him 
beyond  measure.  The  reader  can  scarcely  understand 
how  he  could  devote  any  time  at  all  to  the  soldiers, 
when  he  reads  the  following  description  of  his  daily 
work,  as  given  by  parties  who  saw  him  every  day. 

"  Mr.  Lincoln  is  an  early  riser,  and  he  thus  is  able 
to  devote  two  or  three  hours  each  morning  to  his 
voluminous  private  correspondence,  besides  glancing 
at  a  city  paper.  At  nine,  he  breakfasts  ;  then  walks 
over  to  the  War  Office  to  read  such  war  telegrams  as 
they  give  him,  and  to  have  a  chat  with  General  Hal- 
leck  on  the  military  situation,  in  which  he  takes  a 
great  interest.  Returning  to  the  White  House,  he 
goes  through  with  his  morning's  mail,  in  company 
with  a  private  secretary,  who  makes  a  minute  of  the 
reply  which  he  is  to  make ;  and  others  the  President 
retains,   that   he   may  answer  them    himself.      Ever} 


374        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  MOUSE. 


letter  receives  attention  ;  and  all  which  are  entitled  to 
a  reply,  receive  one,  no  matter  how  they  are  worded, 
or  how  inelegant  the  chirography  may  be.  Tuesdays 
and  Fridays  are  cabinet  days ;  but,  on  the  other  days, 
visitors  at  the  White  House  are  requested  to  wait  in 
the  ante-chamber,  and  send  in  their  cards.  Some- 
times, before  the  President  has  finished  reading  his 
mail,  Louis  will  have  a  handful  of  pasteboard ;  and, 
from  the  cards  laid  before  him,  Mr.  Lincoln  has  visitors 
ushered  in,  giving  precedence  to  acquaintances.  Three 
or  four  hours  do  they  pour  in,  in  rapid  succession, 
nine  out  of  ten  asking  offices  ;  and  patiently  does  the 
President  listen  to  their  application.  .  .  .  The 
simple  and  natural  manner  in  which  he  delivers  his 
thoughts  makes  him  appear  to  those  visiting  him  like 
an  earnest,  affectionate  friend.  At  four  o'clock,  the 
President  declines  seeing  any  more  company,  and 
sometimes  accompanies  his  wife  in  her  carriage  to  take 
a  ride.  .  .  .  He  dines  at  six  ;  and  it  is  rare  that 
some  personal  friends  do  not  grace  the  round  dining- 
table,  where  he  throws  off  the  cares  of  office,  and 
reminds  those  who  have  been  in  Kentucky  of  the  oki 
school  gentlemen,  who  used  to  dispense  generous 
hospitality  there." 

Another  writer  adds  :  "  At  night,  from  ten  to  twelve, 
he  usually  makes  a  tour  all  round,  —  now  at  Secretary 
Seward's,  and  then  at  General  Halleck's  ;  and,  if  Gen- 
eral Burnside  was  nearer,  he  would  see  him  each  night 
before  he  went  to  bed.  Those  who  know  his  habits, 
and  want  to  see  him  late  at  night,  follow  him  round 
from  place  to  place ;  and  the  last  search  generally 
brings  him  up  at  General  Halleck's,  as  he  can  get  the 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        375 

iatest  army  intelligence  there.  Whoever  else  is  asleep 
or  indolent,  the  President  is  wide  awake  and  around/' 
How  a  public  servant,  under  such  a  constant  press 
ure  of  care,  could  find  time  to  listen  to  every  complaint 
of  soldiers  and  their  friends,  many  of  the  cases  requir- 
ing much  time  to  investigate,  and  also  visit  hospitals 
and  go  to  the  front  to  "  see  how  the  boys  are  getting 
along,"  the  reader  can  scarcely  understand.  But  he 
did,  as  the  very  interesting  incidents  we  shall  relate 
abundantly  show.  There  is  evidence  that  his  heart 
was  not  so  thoroughly  absorbed  in  any  other  depart- 
ment of  his  work  as  it  was  in  this.  He  fully  real- 
ized that  the  life  of  the  nation  hung  upon  the 
life  of  the  soldier — that  the  appeal  from  the  bal- 
lot to  the  bullet  was  a  dire  necessity  —  hence,  he 
thought,  "the  highest  merit  is  due  to  the  soldier;" 
and  he  never  belied  that  sentiment.  To  the  day  of 
his  death,  he  treated  soldiers  as  if  they  were  really  of 
more  consequence,  in  the  fearful  crisis,  than  governors 
and  senators.  On  one  occasion,  when  there  was  so 
great  a  crowd  at  one  of  his  receptions  that  hand-shak- 
ing was  discontinued,  the  President  stood  and  bowed 
his  acknowledgments  to  senators  and  representatives ; 
but  finally,  observing  a  wounded  soldier  enter  with  his 
poorly-clad  mother,  he  hastily  left  his  position,  crowded 
his  way  to  the  couple,  and  taking  them  both  by  the 
hand,  he  gave  them  a  most  cordial  welcome,  congratu- 
lating the  woman  upon  having  so  patriotic  a  son,  and 
expressing  his  sympathy  for  the  son  in  his  disabled 
condition.  It  was  a  very  affecting  demonstration,  and 
it  brought  tears  to  the  eyes  of  many  spectators.  The 
President  simply  acted  what  he  had  said  again  and 


37$       PIONEER   HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 

again,  "the  highest  merit  is  clue  to  the  soldier."  All 
who  witnessed  the  hearty  greeting  were  satisfied  that 
Mr.  Lincoln  meant  what  he  said. 

In  this  and  other  incidents  to  be  related,  the  true 
Republican  simplicity  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  character  ap- 
pears. Official  distinction  obtruded  no  barrier  between 
his  own  honest  heart  and  that  of  the  brave  and  true 
soldier. 

One  day  he  was  going  through  a  passageway  to  his 
private  room  for  a  cup  of  tea,  when  he  heard  the  cry 
of  a  child.  He  returned  immediately  to  his  office,  and 
rang  the  bell ;  Daniel  responded  promptly. 

"  Daniel,  is  there  a  woman  with  a  baby  in  the  ante- 
room ? " 

" There  is,  Mr.  President;  and  she  has  been  there 
three  days,"  Daniel  replied.  "  There  has  been  no 
chance  for  her  to  get  in." 

"  Go  at  once,  and  send  her  to  me,"  he  said,  adding 
some  words  of  regret  that  she  had  been  overlooked. 

The  woman,  with  the  baby  in  her  arms,  was  soon  in  his 
presence,  pleading  for  her  husband,  who  was  sentenced 
to  be  shot  as  a  deserter  from  the  army.  There  were 
several  extenuating  circumstances,  and  the  President 
granted  her  request,  writing  his  decision  upon  a  slip 
of  paper. 

" There,  my  dear  woman,"  he  said,  "you  take  that, 
and  it  will  bring  back  your  husband,"  at  the  same  time 
directing  her  where  to  go  with  the  document.  Con- 
vulsive sobs  of  joy  were  all  the  response  the  glad 
woman  could  make,  as  she  retired.  Daniel  went  up  to 
her,  and  pulled  her  shawl,  saying,  "  Madam,  it  was  the 
baby  that  did  it." 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        37? 

Hon.  W.  D.  Kelley  said  to  the  President,  "  There  is 
a  lad  on  the  gunboat  Ottawa,  who  has  shown  the 
mettle  of  a  man  in  two  serious  engagements.  Can  you 
not  send  him  to  the  naval  school?  You  have  the 
authority  to  send  three  boys  there  annually,  who  have 
served  one  year  in  the  navy." 

"  Perhaps  so,"  responded  the  President;  "let  me 
hear  more  about  it."  Mr.  Kelley  rehearsed,  in  detail, 
the  heroic  deeds  of  the  boy. 

"  If  the  appointments  for  this  year  have  not  been 
made,  let  this  boy  be  appointed,"  he  wrote  at  once  to 
the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  passing  the  message  to  Mr. 
Kelley. 

The  appointment  was  made ;  but  it  was  found  the 
lad  was  not  quite  fourteen  years  of  age.  "  I  think  the 
President  can  make  it  right,"  said  Mr.  Kelley  to  him  ; 
and  he  took  the  lad  to  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  Mr.  President,"  said  Kelley,  "  my  young  friend, 
Willie  Bladen,  finds  a  difficulty  about  his  appointment. 
You  have  directed  him  to  appear  at  the  school  in  July, 
and  he  will  not  be  fourteen  until  September."  Willie 
bowed  in  a  graceful,  soldierly  way  to  the  President. 

"Bless  me!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Lincoln,  laying  down 
his  spectacles;  "is  that  the  boy  who  did  so  gallantly 
In  those  two  great  battles  ?  Why,  I  feel  I  should  bow 
to  him,  and  not  he  to  me."  Then,  taking  the  order 
previously  written,  he  changed  it  from  July  to  Septem- 
ber ;  and  putting  his  hand  lovingly  on  Willie's  head, 
he  said  : 

"  Now,  my  noble  boy,  go  home,  and  have  a  good 
time  during  the  two  months,  for  they  are  about  the 
last  holiday  you  will  get." 


37^        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Willie  bowed  himself  out,  remarking  to  an  acquaint- 
ance, "  I  should  like  to  have  a  game  of  romps  with  that 
man." 

A  small,  pale,  delicate-looking  boy  waited  in  the 
crowd  to  see  the  President.  Observing  him,  Mr.  Lin- 
coln said,  "  Come  here,  my  boy,  and  tell  me  what  you 
want." 

Advancing  timidly,  the  little  fellow  placed  his  hand 
on  the  arm  of  the  President's  chair,  and  said:  — 

"  Mr.  President,  I  have  been  a  drummer  in  a  regi- 
ment for  two  years,  and  my  colonel  got  angry  with  me, 
and  turned  me  off.  I  was  taken  sick  and  have  been  a 
long  time  in  the  hospital.  This  is  the  first  time  I  have 
been  out,  and  I  came  to  see  if  you  could  not  do  some- 
thing for  me." 

His  plea  touched  Mr.  Lincoln's  heart,  and  he  replied 
by  asking  the  boy,  — 

"  Where  do  you  live,  my  son  ?" 

"I  have  no  home,"  the  lad  answered  sadly. 

"  Where  is  your  father  ? " 

"  He  died  in  the  army  some  time  ago." 

"Where  is  your  mother?" 

"  My  mother  is  dead  also.  I  have  no  father,  no 
mother,  no  brothers,  no  sisters,  and,"  bursting  into 
:ears,  "no  friends  —  nobody  cares  for  me." 

Mr.  Lincoln's  eyes  filled  with  tears,  and  his  lips 
quivered  for  a  moment,  when  he  continued,  — 

"Can't  you  sell  newspapers?" 

"No,  I  am  too  weak;  and  the  surgeon  told  me  I 
must  leave  the  hospital,  and  I  have  no  money,  and  no- 
where to  go  to." 

The  President  could  say  no  more  ;  and  he  drew  forth 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        379 

a  card,  and  wrote  on  it,  "  Take  care  of  this  poor  boy," 
directing  it  to  the  proper  official  ;  then  handed  it  to 
the  lad,  whose  face  lit  up  with  a  smile  because  he  had 
found  a  true  friend  in  the  President. 

A  citizen  of  Washington  tells  the  following  :  — 

"  I  was  waiting  my  turn  to  speak  to  the  President 
one  day,  when  my  attention  was  attracted  by  the  sad 
patient  face  of  a  woman  advanced  in  life,  who  in  a 
faded  hood  and  shawl  was  among  the  applicants  for  an 
interview. 

"  Presently  Mr.  Lincoln  turned  to  her,  saying  in  his 
accustomed  manner,  '  Well,  my  good  woman,  what  can 
I  do  for  you  this  morning  ?'  *  Mr.  President/  said 
she,   '  my  husband  and  three  sons  all  went   into  the 

army.     My  husband  was  killed  in  the  fight  at .     I 

get  along  very  badly  since  then,  living  all  alone,  and  I 
thought  I  would  come  and  ask  you  to  release  to  me  my 
oldest  son/  Mr.  Lincoln  looked  into  her  face  a  mo- 
ment, and  in  his  kindest  accents  responded,  '  Certainly ! 
certainly  !  If  you  have  given  us  all,  and  your  prop  has 
been  taken  away,  you  are  justly  entitled  to  one  of  your 
boys  ! '  He  immediately  made  out  an  order  discharg- 
ing the  young  man,  which  the  woman  took,  and  thank- 
ing him  gratefully,  went  away. 

"  I    had    forgotten    the    circumstance,"    continued 

M ,  "till  last  week,  when  happening  to  be  here 

again,  who  should  come  in  but  the  same  woman.  It 
appeared  that  she  had  gone  herself  to  the  front,  with 
the  President's  order,  and  found  the  son  she  was  in 
search  of  had  been  mortally  wounded  in  a  recent  en- 
gagement, and  taken  to  a  hospital.  She  found  the 
hospital,  but  the  boy  was  dead,  or  died  while  she  was 


380        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

there.  The  surgeon  in  charge  made  a  memorandum 
of  the  facts  upon  the  back  of  the  President's  order, 
and  almost  broken-hearted,  the  poor  woman  had  found 
her  way  again  into  Mr.  Lincoln's  presence.  He  was 
much  affected  by  her  appearance  and  story,  and  said  : 
6 1  know  what  you  wish  me  to  do  now,  and  I  shall  dc 
it  without  your  asking ;  I  shall  release  to  you  your 
second  son.'  Upon  this,  he  took  up  his  pen  and  com- 
menced writing  the  order.  While  he  wras  writing,  the 
poor  woman  stood  by  his  side,  the  tears  running  down 
her  face,  and  passed  her  hand  softly  over  his  head, 
stroking  his  rough  hair,  as  I  have  seen  a  fond  mother 
caress  a  son.  By  the  time  he  had  finished  writing,  his 
own  heart  and  eyes  were  full.  He  handed  her  the 
paper :  '  Now,'  said  he,  'j/ou  have  one  and  /  one  of  the 
other  two  left :  that  is  no  more  than  right/  She  took 
the  paper,  and  reverently  placing  her  hand  again  upon 
his  head,  the  tears  still  upon  her  cheeks,  said  :  *  The 
Lord  bless  you,  Mr.  Lincoln.  May  you  live  a  thousand 
years,  and  may  you  always  be  the  head  of  this  great 
nation!'  " 

Hon.  Thaddeus  Stevens  accompanied  an  elderly  lady 
to  the  President,  to  ask  for  the  pardon  of  her  son,  who 
had  been  sentenced  to  death  by  a  court-martial.  Mr. 
Stevens  knew  that  there  were  circumstances  on  which 
pardon  could  be  reasonably  based.  After  the  Presi 
dent  had  listened  to  the  woman's  story,  he  turned  tc 
Mr.  Stevens. 

"  Mr.  Stevens,  do  you  think  this  is  a  case  that  will 
warrant  my  interference  ?  " 

"Yes;  I  should  have  no  hesitation  in  granting  a 
pardon,"  Mr.  Stevens  replied. 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        38 1 

"Then  I  will  pardon  him,"  and  he  proceeded  to  exe- 
cute the  papers.  The  mother's  heart  was  too  full  for 
utterance.  Her  deep  emotion,  as  she  turned  away, 
told  how  deep  her  gratitude  was.  On  the  way  down 
stairs,  when  she  could  sufficiently  control  her  feelings 
to  speak,  she  broke  out  suddenly  :  — 

"  I  knew  it  was  a  copperhead  lie  !  " 

"What  do  you  refer  to,  madam?"  inquired  Mr. 
Stevens. 

"  Why,  they  told  me  he  was  an  ugly-looking  man, 
and  it's  a  lie.  He  is  the  handsomest  man  I  ever  saw 
in  my  life." 

Speaker  Colfax  interceded  for  the  pardon  of  a  son 
of  one  of  his  constituents,  who  had  been  sentenced  to 
be  shot.  It  was  in  the  evening,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  was 
wearied  by  incessant  calls,  and  wanted  rest.  He 
granted  the  request  of  Mr.  Colfax,  and  said  :  — 

"  Some  of  our  generals  complain  that  I  impair 
discipline  and  subordination  in  the  army  by  my  par- 
dons and  respites,  but  it  makes  me  rested,  after  a  hard 
day's  work,  if  I  can  find  some  good  excuse  for  saving 
a  man's  life,  and  I  go  to  bed  happy  as  I  think  how 
joyous  the  signing  of  my  name  will  make  him  and  his 
family  and  his  friends." 

Senator  Harris,  of  New  York,  interceded  for  the 
reprieve  of  a  young  soldier,  who  was  imprisoned  at 
Elmira,  N.  Y.,  awaiting  the  sentence  of  death.  His 
friends  had  been  to  the  Secretary  of  War  to  intercede 
for  the  condemned  young  man  ;  but  the  Secretary  only 
replied :  — 

"  Can  do  nothing  for  him  ;  it  is  an  aggravated  case." 

True,  it  did  seem  like  an  aggravated  case,  for  the 


382        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHI1E   HOUSE. 

fellow  had  deserted  three  times,  and  once  attempted 
to  poison  his  guards  ;  but  he  had  been  of  unsound 
mind.  Evidence  of  his  insanity  was  laid  before  Sena- 
tor Harris,  who  became  fully  convinced  that  Executive 
clemency  ought  to  save  the  soldier  from  death.  It 
was  twelve  o'clock  on  Wednesday  night  when  the 
senator  went  to  the  President,  and  the  soldier  was  to 
be  executed  on  Thursday.  The  President  was  in  bed. 
A  messenger  was  sent  to  his  room  to  announce  that 
Senator  Harris  desired  to  see  him  upon  important 
business. 

"  Let  him  come  in,"  Mr.  Lincoln  said. 

Senator  Harris  was  soon  at  his  bedside.  "  The  boy 
is  insane,"  he  said;  " there  can  be  no  question  about 
it,  —  an  irresponsible  lad,  and  his  execution  would  be 
murder." 

"  And  you  are  satisfied  that  these  are  the  facts  in 
the  case  ?"  replied  Mr.  Lincoln,  inquiringly. 

"  Perfectly  so.  Besides,  it  is  not  a  pardon  that  we 
ask,  but  a  reprieve  until  a  medical  examination  can  be 
made." 

"Well,  that  is  reasonable  and  just,"  responded  Mr. 
Lincoln.     "  The  boy  shall  be  reprieved." 

He  arose  immediately,  and  ordered  a  telegram  to  be 
sent  to  Elmira  at  once,  delaying  the  execution  of  the 
condemned.  Early  in  the  morning  he  sent  another. 
And  before  the  hour  of  execution  arrived,  he  sent  four 
telegrams  by  different  lines,  fearing  that,  by  some  mis- 
fortune, the  reprieve  might  not  reach  him. 

At  another  time,  Judge  Kellogg,  of  New  York,  in- 
terceded for  the  son  of  one  of  his  neighbors,  sentenced 
by  court-martial  to  be  shot  the  next  day.     It  was  near 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        383 

midnight  when  he  reached  the  White  House,  and  the 
President  had  retired.  First,  however,  he  went  to  the 
Secretary  of  War,  thinking  he  might  accomplish  his 
purpose  without  disturbing  the  President. 

"  Too  many  cases  of  this  kind  have  been  let  oft 
:iiow,"  replied  the  secretary;  "it  is  quite  time  to  make 
aa  example  of  somebody.,, 

"  But  there  are  reasons  enough  for  pardoning  him," 
urged  the  judge  ;  and  he  proceeded  to  enumerate 
them. 

"Nevertheless,  I  shall  not  interfere,"  still  insisted 
the  unmoved  secretary. 

"'Well,  Mr.  Secretary,"  exclaimed  the  judge,  under 
much  excitement,  "  the  boy  is  not  going  to  be  shot,  you 
may  be  sure  of  that." 

He  hurried  away  to  the  White  House,  where  the 
sentinel  intercepted  him,  saying  :  — 

"  My  orders  are  to  admit  no  one  to-night." 

"  But  I  must  go  in  :  it  is  a  case  of  life  and  death," 
urged  the  judge,  persistently. 

"That  fact  cannot  modify  my  orders,"  answered  the 
sentinel. 

"  I  must  go  in  ;  and  I  will  take  the  responsibility/ 
continued  the  judge.  And  he  entered,  going  directly 
;o  the  President's  sleeping-room  without  the  ceremony 
of  sending  his  card.  Opening  the  door,  he  said: 
hurriedly  and  excitedly  :  — 

"  Mr.  President,  a  dispatch  just  received  intorms 
me  that  the  son  of  one  of  my  neighbors  is  to  be  shot 
to-morrow  ;  and  I  want  you  to  save  his  life." 

"  What  is  he  to  be  shot  for  ? "  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  I  don't  know,  and  I  can't  help  what  he  may  have 


384       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

done.  Why,  he  is  an  old  neighbor  of  mine,  and  1 
can't  allow  him  to  be  shot/'  judge  Kellogg  continued, 
under  increasing  heat. 

"  Well,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln,  "  I  don't  believe  thai 
shooting  him  will  do  him  any  good.     Bring  me  a  pen." 

Without  getting  out  of  bed,  he  wrote  a  pardon  for  the 
judge  to  forward  at  once  to  the  boy  so  near  his  doom. 

Benjamin  Owen,  a  young  soldier  of  Vermont,  was 
sentenced  to  be  shot  for  sleeping  at  his  post.  The 
family  were  plunged  into  agony  by  the  dreadful  tidings. 
For  some  reason,  a  reprieve  was  granted  him  for  sev- 
eral days,  when  he  wrote  the  following  letter  to  his 
father : 

"  Dear  Father,  —  When  this  reaches  you  I  shall  be  in 
eternity.  At  first  it  seemed  awful  to  me,  but  I  have  thought 
about  it  so  much  now  that  it  has  no  terror.     They  say  they  will 

not  bind  me,  but  that  I   may  meet  my  death  like  a  man 

You  know  I  promised  Jemmy  Carr's  mother  I  would  look  after  her 
boy,  and  when  he  fell  sick  I  did  all  I  could  for  him.  He  was  not 
strong  when  he  was  ordered  back  into  the  ranks,  and  the  day 
before  that  night,  I  carried  all  his  luggage,  besides  my  own,  on 
our  march.  Toward  night  we  went  in  on  double  quick,  and 
though  the  luggage  began  to  feel  very  heavy,  everybody  else  was 
tired,  too ;  and  as  for  Jemmy,  if  I  had  not  lent  him  an  arm  now 
and  then  he  would  have  dropped  by  the  way.  I  was  all  tired  out 
when  I  came  into  camp,  and  then,  it  was  Jemmy's  turn  to  be 
sentry,  and  I  would  take  his  place  ;  but  I  was  too  tired,  father,  I 
could  not  have  kept  awake  if  I  had  had  a  gun  at  my  head.  But 
*  did  not  know  it  until  —  well,  until  it  was  too  late.  .  .  .  Our 
good  colonel  would  save  me  if  he  could.  He  says,  forgive  him, 
father,  he  only  did  his  duty.  And  don't  lay  my  death  against 
Jemmy.  The  poor  boy  is  broken-hearted,  and  does  nothing  but 
be£  and  entreat  them  to  let  him  die  in  my  stead.  I  can't  bear  to 
think  of  mother  and  sister.  Comfort  them,  father !  God  help 
pc**,  it  is  very  hard  to  bear  !     Good-by,  father  !     God  seems  neai 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        385 


and  dear  to  me ;  not  at  all  as  if  he  wished  me  to  perish  forever, 
but  as  if  he  felt  sorry  for  his  poor,  sinful,  broken-hearted  child, 
and  would  take  me  to  be  with  him  and  my  Saviour,  in  a  better, 
better  life  !     God  bless  you  all ! 

His  sister,  who  had  read  much  about  the  President's 
tender  heart,  seized  the  letter,  and  quickly  as  steam 
could  carry  her  was  in  Washington,  in  the  presence  of 
Mr.  Lincoln. 

"Well,  my  child,  <rhat  do  you  want  so  bright  and 
early  this  morning  > "  the  President  asked. 

"  My  brother's  life,"  she  said,  with  much  emotion. 

"  Who  is  he  ?  " 

She  told  him,  and  for  what  he  was  sentenced  to  be 
shot. 

"  Oh,  yes,  that  fatal  sleep,"  responded  Mr.  Lincoln  ; 
"thousands  of  lives  might  have  been  lost  by  that 
sleep.,, 

"  So  my  father  said ;  but  he  was  so  tired  carrying 
Jemmy's  baggage ;"  and  here  she  put  his  letter  into 
the  President's  hand,  saying  that  "would  tell  him  all 
about  it." 

Mr.  Lincoln  read  Benjamin's  letter;  when,  with  tear- 
ful eye  and  melted  heart,  he  quickly  wrote  an  order  for 
his  pardon,  and,  lest  there  might  be  some  delay  in  the 
conveyance  of  the  message,  he  ordered  his  own  car- 
riage and  delivered  it  personally  to  the  proper  authori- 
ties. Before  leaving  his  office,  however,  he  said  to  the 
sister : 

"  Go  home,  my  child,  and  tell  that  father  of  yours, 
who  could  approve  his  country's  sentence,  even  when 
it  took  the  life  of  a  child  like  that,  that  Abraham  Lin- 
coln thinks  the  life  far  too  precious  to  be  lost." 


3 86       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

He  ordered  a  furlough  for  the  soldier-boy,  also,  that 
he  might  return  with  his  sister  to  Vermont ;  and  when, 
subsequently,  brother  and  sister  came  to  the  White 
House,  the  President,  in  his  private  room,  fastened  a 
badge  of  office  upon  his  shoulder,  saying,  "the  shoulder 
that  could  carry  a  sick  comrade's  baggage,  and  die  for 
it  so  uncomplainingly,  must  wear  that  strap." 

The  father  of  a  soldier  applied  to  Congressman 
Kellogg,  of  whom  we  have  spoken,  for  the  pardon  of 
his  son,  under  sentence  of  death.  Mr.  Kellogg  felt  that 
it  was  a  case  where  executive  clemency  ought  to  be 
exercised  ;  and  he  said  to  the  distressed  father,  "  you 
wa;t  here  until  I  go  and  see  what  can  be  done." 
He  went  directly  to  President  Lincoln,  and  laid  the 
case  before  him.  When  he  reached  that  part  of 
the  narrative  which  related  to  a  fearful  charge 
across  a  bridge,  wherein  the  soldier  displayed  re- 
markable heroism,  Mr.  Lincoln  started  up,  and  asked 
earnestly :  — 

"Do  you  say  that  the  young  man  was  wounded?" 
as  if  he  were  overjoyed  to  find  a  decent  reason  for 
saving  another  life. 

"  Yes,  badly  woundrd,"  added  Mr.  Kellogg. 

"Then  he  has  shed  his  blood  for  his  country?"  sug- 
gested Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  Yes,  and  shed  it  nobly,"  responded  Mr.  Kellogg. 

"  Kellogg  ! "  continued  the  President,  brightening  uft 
"  is  there  not  something  in  the  Bible  about  the  shed- 
ding of  blood  for  the  remission  of  sins?" 

"  I  think  you  are  right,"  replied  Mr.  Kellogg. 

"Well,  it  is  a  good  point,  and  there  is  no  going  be 
hind  it,"  rejoined  the  President.     And,  taking  up  his 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        387 


pen,  he  wrote  a  pardon,  which  Mr.  Kellogg  bore  to  the 
now  glad  father. 

With  all  his  leniency  towards  erring  soldiers  and  his 
passion  for  granting  pardons,  he  had  no  patience  with 
rebel  sympathizers  in  places  of  trust.  When  Alexander 
Long,  of  Ohio,  proposed,  in  the  House  of  Representa 
tives,  to  recognize  the  Southern  Confederacy,  General 
Garfield  sprang  to  his  feet,  and  denounced  the  "  treason  " 
in  words  of  bitter  detestation,  comparing  the  author  of 
the  proposition  to  Benedict  Arnold,  who  betrayed  his 
country  in  the  hour  of  its  peril,  and  entreating  loyal 
representatives  not  to  believe  that  another  such 
"  growth  on  the  soil  of  Ohio  deformed  the  face  of 
nature,  and  darkened  the  light  of  God's  day."  When 
news  of  this  speech  reached  the  President,  he  ex- 
pressed his  approbation  in  the  most  unqualified  man- 
ner, and  subsequently  thanked  General  Garfield  for 
"  flaying  Long  alive." 

At  one  time  the  President  called  upon  the  head  sur- 
geon at  City  Point,  and  told  him  that  he  wanted  to 
visit  all  the  hospitals  there,  and  shake  hands  with 
every  soldier,  as  incidentally  referred  to  on  a  former 
page. 

"  Do  you  know  wna't  a  jod  you  have  undertaken,  Mr. 
President  ? "  responded  the  surgeon. 

"How  many  have  you  in  the  hospitals?"  Mr.  Lin- 
coln asked. 

"  From  five  to  six  thousand,"  answered  the  surgeon; 
"  and  you  will  be  exhausted  long  before  you  get  through 
all  the  wards." 

Mr.  Lincoln  smiled  as  he  continued,  "  I  think  I  am 
quite  equal  to  the  task.     At  any  rate,  I  can  try  and  go 


388        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

as  far  as  I  can.  I  shall  never  see  the  boys  again 
probably,  and  I  want  they  should  know  how  I  ap- 
preciate what  they  have  done  for  the  country." 

The  tour  of  the  hospitals  began,  the  surgeon  leading 
the  way,  and  the  President  stopping  at  every  cot,  ex- 
tending his  hand,  with  words  of  greeting  to  one,  sym- 
pathy to  another,  and  a  kind  inquiry  of  some  —  all 
glad  to  take  his  hand.  In  his  rounds,  he  approached 
a  cot  on  which  lay  a  rebel  soldier.  Before  the  Presi- 
dent had  time  to  extend  his  hand  the  repentant  soldier 
extended  his,  bursting  into  tears,  and  saying,  "  Mr. 
Lincoln,  I  have  long  wanted  to  see  you,  and  ask  your 
forgiveness  for  ever  raising  my  hand  against  the  old 
flag." 

Mr.  Lincoln  wept,  as  he  shook  the  penitent's  hand 
kindly,  assuring  him  of  prompt  forgiveness.  And  this 
recalls  his  remark  to  a  public  man  who  was  complain- 
ing of  his  Amnesty  Proclamation.  "  When  a  man  is 
sincerely  penitent  for  his  misdeeds,  and  gives  satisfac- 
tory evidence  of  the  same,  he  can  safely  be  pardoned, 
and  there  is  no  exception  to  the  ride."  The  last  clause, 
which  we  have  put  in  italics,  expresses  the  true  Gospel 
idea  of  forgiveness  better  than  most  sermons  of  twenty 
pages. 

After  the  tour  of  the  hospitals  had  been  made,  and 
the  President  had  seated  himself  in  the  surgeon's  office, 
word  came  that,  "  one  of  the  wards  was  overlooked- 
and  the  boys  want  to  see  the  President." 

"You  are  thoroughly  tired,  Mr.  President,  and  sc 
am  I,"  said  the  surgeon,  "  and  you  had  better  not  go ;  it 
will  make  no  difference." 

"But  I  must  go,"  Mr.  Lincoln  replied;    "I  would 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        389 

not  knowingly  omit  one,  and  the  boys  will  be  so  dis- 
appointed if  they  do  not  see  me." 

He  went,  and  completed  the  hand-shaking  for  that 
day,  which  consumed  several  hours,  and  returned  per- 
fectly satisfied,  because  he  had  carried  joy  and  comfort 
to  the  "  brave  boys  "  whom  he  loved  as  a  father 

His  letters  and  public  documents  abound  in  expres 
sions  which  show  that  the  soldiers,  officers  and  privates, 
were  borne  upon  his  mind  constantly.  He  was  inyitekl 
to  attend  a  large  meeting  in  New  York  in  honor  of 
General  Grant.  He  closed  his  reply  with  these 
words :  — 

"  He  and  his  brave  soldiers  are  now  in  the  midst  of 
their  great  trial ;  and  I  trust  that  at  yonr  meeting 
you  will  so  shape  your  good  words  that  they  may  turn 
to  men  and  guns  moving  to  his  and  their  support." 

He  closed  his  letter,  accepting  his  second  nomina- 
tion, with  the  following  :  — 

"  I  am  especially  gratified  that  the  soldiers  and  sea- 
men were  not  forgotten  by  the  convention,  as  they 
forever  must  and  will  be  remembered  by  the  grateful 
country,  for  whose  salvation  they  devote  their  lives." 

If  the  people  would  but  remember  the  soldier,  they 
might  withhold  some  of  their  praise  for  himself  ! 

News  of  the  bloody  slaughter  of  the  "boys  "  always 
filled  the  heart  of  the  President  with  grief. 

" Terrible!  terrible!" 

How  often  this  expressive  word  dropped  from  his 
lips  !  Often  he  could  neither  eat  nor  sleep,  his  soul 
was  so  wrought  upon  by  bad  news  from  the  front. 
When  the  tidings  of  defeat  with  very  heavy  loss,  in 
the  Wilderness  battles,  reached  him,  he  exclaimed  : — • 


390        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  My  God  !  my  God  !  Twenty  thousand  poor  souls 
sent  to  their  account  in  one  day !  I  cannot  bear  it  ! 
I  cannot  bear  it !  " 

One  morning,  Secretary  Seward  found  him  walking 
his  room  with  a  most  distressed  appearance  in  his  face, 
when  he  inquired  if  the  President  was  not  well. 

"  This  dreadful  news  from  the  boys  has  banished 
sleep  and  appetite,"  he  answered.  "  Not  a  moment's 
sleep  last  night,  nor  a  crumb  of  food  this  morning ! " 

It  was  the  grief  of  a  father  over  his  fallen  sons,  — - 
sincere  and  tender  as  that  of  a  mother. 

At  another  time,  the  news  of  a  heavy  loss  in  a  hard- 
fought  battle  caused  him  to  bury  his  face  in  his  hands, 
saying  :  — 

"  I  shall  never  more  be  glad  !  " 

Dr.  Holland  says  of  Mr.  Lincoln  and  the  soldiers:-- 

"  With  the  soldiers  who  were  fighting  the  battles  of 
the  country,  he  had  the  deepest  sympathy.  Whenever 
he  was  congratulated  upon  a  success,  he  never  failed 
to  allude  gratefully  to  the  noble  men  who  had  won  it. 
The  trials  of  these  men,  —  their  sacrifices  of  comfort 
and  health,  of  limb  and  life,  —  touched  him  with  a 
sympathy  that  really  sapped  the  foundations  of  his 
constitution.  They  were  constantly  in  his  thoughts  ; 
and  not  a  battle  was  fought  to  whose  sacrifices  his  own 
vitality  did  not  contribute.  He  admired  the  fighting 
man,  and  looked  upon  him  as,  in  one  sense,  his  supe- 
rior. Although  he  did  not  plead  guilty  to  the  weakness 
of  moral  cowardice,  he  felt  that  the  battle-field  was  a 
fearful  place,  from  which,  unaided  by  its  special  in- 
spirations, he  should  run.  Indeed,  Mr.  Lincoln  did 
not  give  himself  credit  for  the  physical  courage  which 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        391 

he  really  possessed,  though  he  had  probably  grown 
timid  with  his  failing  strength. 

"  This  sympathy  with  the  soldiers  he  manifested  in 
many  ways,  and  in  none  more  than  in  the  treatment 
of  their  offences  against  military  law.  In  a  letter 
'o  the  author,  a  personal  friend  of  the  President 
says :  '  I  called  on  him  one  day  in  the  early  part 
of  the  war.  He  had  just  written  a  pardon  for  a 
young  man  who  had  been  sentenced  to  be  shot,  for 
sleeping  at  his  post  as  a  sentinel.  He  remarked  aa 
he  read  it  to  me  :  — 

"  '  I  could  not  think  of  going  into  eternity  with  the 
blood  of  the  poor  young  man  on  my  skirts/  Then 
he  added  :  — 

"  '  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  a  boy,  raised  on  a 
farm,  probably  in  the  habit  of  going  to  bed  at  dusk, 
should,  when  required  to  watch,  fall  asleep ;  and  I  can- 
not consent  to  shoot  him  for  such  an  act/ 

"  This  story  with  its  moral  is  made  complete  by 
Rev.  Newman  Hall,  of  London,  who,  in  a  sermon 
preached  after  and  upon  Mr.  Lincoln's  death,  says 
that  the  dead  body  of  this  youth  was  found  among  the 
slain  on  the  field  of  Fredericksburg,  wearing  next  his 
heart  a  photograph  of  his  preserver,  beneath  which 
die  grateful  fellow  had  written.  '  God  bless  President 
Lincoln  !  '  From  the  same  sermon  another  anecdote 
is  gleaned,  of  a  similar  character,  which  is  evidently 
authentic.  An  officer  of  the  army,  in  conversation 
with  the  preacher,  said  :  '  The  first  week  of  our  com- 
mand, there  were  twenty-four  deserters  sentenced  by 
court-martial  to  be  shot,  and  the  warrants  for  their 
execution  were  sent  to  the  President  to  be  signed 


392        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

He  refused.  I  went  to  Washington  and  had  an  inter- 
view. I  said  :  "  Mr.  President,  unless  these  men  are 
made  an  example  of,  the  army  itself  is  in  danger- 
Mercy  to  the  few  is  cruelty  to  the  many." 

"'Mr.  General,'  he  replied,  'there  are  already  too 
many  weeping  widows  in  the  United  States.  For 
God's  sake,  don't  ask  me  to  add  to  the  number,  for  I 
won't  do  it.'  " 

As  Dr.  Holland  intimates,  President  Lincoln  was 
deeply  impressed  by  deeds  of  daring,  and  he  never 
lost  sight  of  officer  or  private  who  distinguished  him- 
self in  raid  or  battle.  At  a  time  when  he  was  very 
much  depressed  in  consequence  of  defeats,  instead  of 
victories,  to  the  national  arms,  the  news  of  successes 
in  the  Department  of  the  West  was  brought  to  him. 
The  battle  of  Chickamauga  had  been  fought,  and  the 
bravery  and  exploits  of  General  Garfield  were  rehearsed 
to  him,  such  as  his  daring  ride  from  General  Rosecrans 
to  General  Thomas,  and  bringing  supplies  up  the  Big 
Sandy  to  his  hungry  soldiers. 

"  How  is  it,"  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln  of  an  army 
officer  who  was  present  at  the  time,  "  that  Garfield  did 
m  two  weeks  what  would  have  taken  one  of  your 
regular  officers  two  months  to  accomplish  ?" 

"  Because  he  was  not  educated  at  West  Point,  as  I 
was,"  replied  the  officer,  laughingly,  thinking  the 
President  designed  to  slur  West  Point  graduates. 

"  No,  that  was  not  the  reason,"  retorted  Mr.  Lincoln. 
'  It  was  because,  when  he  was  a  boy,  he  had  to  work 
for  a  living." 

He  made  Garfield  a  major-general  for  his  courage, 
tact,  and  efficiency  ;  and  when,  a  few  months  latei; 


HIS  ORE  A  T  INI  BREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        393 


Ohio  proposed  to  transfer  him  to  Congress,  and  Gar- 
field objected,  the  President  said  :  — 

"  By  ail  means,  send  him  here.  We  need  just  such 
a  man  of  military  experience  and  skill  in  Congress." 

He  was  often  moved  by  the  tales  of  sacrifice  on  the 
part  of  parents,  wives,  and  sisters.  He  seemed  to 
enter  really  into  the  feelings  of  patriotic  mothers  and 
A/ives,  who  cheerfully  parted  with  their  dear  ones  for 
the  sake  of  their  country.  He  was  told  of  a  mother 
in  Boston  who  had  lost  five  sons  in  battles,  and  he 
immediately  sat  down  and  wrote  the  following  letter 
to  her  :  — 

"Executive  Mansion,  Washington,  Nov.  21,  1864. 
"  Dear  Madam  :  —  I  have  been  shown,  in  the  files  of  the  War 
Department,  a  statement  of  the  Adjutant-General  of  Massachu- 
setts, that  you  are  the  mother  of  rive  sons,  who  have  died  gloriously 
on  the  field  of  battle.  I  feel  how  weak  and  fruitless  must  be  any 
words  of  mine  which  should  attempt  to  beguile  you  from  the 
grief  of  a  loss  so  overwhelming.  But  I  cannot  refrain  from 
tendering  to  you  the  consolation  that  may  be  found  in  the  thanks 
of  the  Republic  they  died  to  save.  I  pray  that  our  Heavenly 
Father  may  assuage  the  anguish  of  your  bereavement,  and  leave 
you  only  the  cherished  memory  of  the  loved  and  lost,  and  the 
solemn  pride  that  must  be  yours  to  have  laid  so  costly  a  sacrifice 
upon  the  altar  of  freedon. 

"  Yours  very  sincerely  and  respectfully, 

44  Abraham  Lincoln. 
6(JTo  Mrs.  Bixby,  Boston,  Massachusetts." 

His  deep  interest  in  the  Union  army  caused  him  to 
ftail  every  organization  in  behalf  of  the  sick  and 
wounded  soldiers.  The  Sanitary  Commission,  the 
Christian  Commission,  and  all  soldiers'  aid  societies., 
won  his  heart.     Any  measure  or  enterprise  that  would 


394       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

carry  comfort  to  the  "  boys  "  commanded  his  undivided 
support.  In  a  speech  at  the  close  of  a  very  successful 
fair  in  Washington,  for  the  benefit  of  soldiers,  he 
said  :  — 

i:  In  this  extraordinary  war,  extraordinary  developments  have 
manifested  themselves,  such  as  have  not  been  seen  in  former 
wars  ;  and  among  these  manifestations  nothing  has  been  more 
remarkable  than  these  fairs  for  the  relief  of  suffering  soldiers 
and  their  families.  And  the  chief  agents  in  these  fairs  are  the 
women  of  America.  I  am  not  accustomed  to  the  use  of  the 
ianguage  of  eulogy  ;  I  have  never  studied  the  art  of  paying 
compliments  to  women  ;  but  I  must  say  that,  if  all  that  has  been 
said  by  orators  and  poets,  since  the  creation  of  the  world,  in 
praise  of  women  were  applied  to  the  women  of  America,  it  would 
not  do  them  justice  for  their  conduct  during  this  war.  I  will 
close  by  saying,  God  bless  the  women  of  America  ! " 

He  was  invited  to  preside  at  a  meeting  of  the  Chris- 
tian  Commission  in  Washington,  but  a  pressure  of 
duties  prevented  even  his  attendance.  He  wrote, 
however,  to  the  chairman  of  the  committee  :  — 

"While,  for  reasons  which  I  deem  sufficient,  I  must  decline  to 
preside,  I  cannot  withhold  my  approval  of  the  meeting,  and  its 
worthy  objects.  Whatever  shall  be,  sincerely  and  in  God's  name, 
devised  for  the  good  of  the  soldiers  and  seamen  in  their  hard 
spheres  of  duty,  can  scarcely  fail  to  be  blessed.  And  whatever 
shall  turn  our  thoughts  from  the  unreasoning  and  uncharitable 
passions,  prejudices,  and  jealousies  incident  to  a  great  national 
trouble  such  as  ours,  and  to  fix  them  on  the  vast  and  long-endur- 
ing consequences,  for  weal  or  for  woe,  which  are  to  result  from 
the  trouble,  and  especially  to  strengthen  our  reliance  on  the 
Supreme  Being  for  the  final  triumph  of  the  right,  cannot  but  be 
well  for  us  all." 

These  earnest,  words  voice  not  only  his  abiding 
interest  in  the  loyal  army,  but  also  his  equally  abiding 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        395 

confidence  that  God  would  give  final  victory  to  the 
right. 

For  the  purpose  of  emphasizing  his  sympathy  with 
the  boys  at  the  front,  he  attended  soldiers'  fairs  in 
Baltimore  and  Philadelphia.  Three  years  before  he 
was  obliged  to  pass  through  the  former  city  in  dis 
guise  to  escape  assassination.  In  its  streets  the  Mas^ 
sachusetts  Sixth  had  met  with  a  bloody  reception  on 
its  way  to  protect  Washington,  and  left  some  01  its 
heroic  members  dead.  The  city  was  then  a  hot-bed  of 
treason.  But  a  great  change  had  been  wrought  there, 
and  the  chief  attraction  of  the  Soldiers'  Fair  was  the 
presence  of  Mr.  Lincoln.  Alluding  to  the  remarkable 
change  that  had  been  wrought  he  said,  in  his  ad 
dress,  — 

"  Calling  to  mind  that  we  are  in  Baltimore,  we 
cannot  fail  to  note  that  the  world  moves.  Looking 
upon  the  many  people  I  see  assembled  here  to  serve 
as  they  best  may  the  soldiers  of  the  Union,  it  occurs 
to  me  that  three  years  ago  those  soldiers  could  not 
pass  through  Baltimore.  I  would  say,  blessings  upon 
the  men  who  have  wrought  these  changes,  and  the 
women  who  have  assisted  them  ! " 

In  both  these  places,  he  spoke  of  the  loyalty  and 
sufferings  of  the  "  boys  "  with  fatherly  tenderness,  and 
eulogized  the  women  of  the  land  for  their  self-denying 
and  philanthropic  labors  in  their  behalf. 

The  proceeds  of  the  Fair  at  Philadelphia  amounted 
to  one  million  three  hundred  thousand  dollars,  a  result 
over  which  the  President  became  enthusiastic.  When 
he  was  told  that  the  fairs  in  eleven  cities  netted  nearly 
five  million  dollars  he  exclaimed  :  — 


396       PIONEER  HOME    TO    WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Was  there  ever  such  a  country  for  patriotism  and 
liberality  ?  How  much  suffering  will  be  prevented 
among  the  brave  boys  ! " 

When  he  was  told  that  the  Sanitary  Commission 
within  ten  days  after  the  terrible  battle  of  Antietam, 
sent  28.763  pieces  of  dry  goods,  shirts,  towels,  bed- 
ticks,  pillows,  etc. ;  30  barrels  of  old  linen,  bandages, 
and  lint  ;  3,188  pounds  of  farina ;  2,620  pounds  of  con- 
densed milk  ;  5,000  pounds  of  beef-stock  and  canned 
meats  ;  several  tons  of  lemons  and  other  fruit,  crackers, 
tea,  sugar,  rubber-cloth,  tin-cups,  and  4,000  sets  of 
hospital  clothing  ;  all  of  which  was  tenderly  distributed 
among  the  wounded  by  the  scores  of  volunteer  agents 
of  the  Christian  Commission,  language  was  not  an 
ample  vehicle  to  convey  his  overflowing  gratitude  ;  his 
unbidden  tears  told  how  full  of  joy  his  heart  was. 

We  have  said  that  Mr.  Lincoln  was  opposed  to  the 
war-rule  of  retaliation  ;  but  the  suffering  of  our  soldiers 
in  Libby  Prison,  at  Andersonville,  Belle  Isle,  and  at 
other  points  in  the  South,  caused  him  to  modify  his 
views,  and  declare  for  retaliation,  at  least,  under  cer- 
tain circumstances. 

The  investigation  of  the  Congressional  Committee 
on  the  "  Conduct  of  the  War,"  confirmed  the  most 
harrowing  reports  from  rebel  prisons,  over  which  Mr. 
Lincoln's  heart  bled,  and  his  indignation  was  aroused. 
Speaker  Colfax  said  of  him,  "  I  doubt  if  his  most  intl 
mate  associate  ever  heard  him  utter  bitter  or  vindic- 
tive language.  He  seemed  wholly  free  from  malignity 
or  revenge,  from  ill-will  or  injustice.,,  But  the  bar- 
barous treatment  of  his  "boys,"  who  were  prisoners  in 
Southern    stockades,    came   very   near   upsetting   his 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        397 

tamous  motto,  "  With  malice  towards  none ;  with 
charity  for  all."  He  could  endure  censure  and  even 
insult,  and,  "  attacked  ever  so  sharply,  never  answered 
railing  for  railing,"  but  his  whole  soul  was  stirred  over 
the  treatment  of  Union  soldiers  by  their  captors. 

The  letter  of  Surgeon  Chapel,  who  had  charge  of 
the  "  West's  Buildings  Hospital,"  Baltimore,  to  which 
many  of  our  soldiers  were  sent,  on  returning  from 
Southern  prisons,  caused  him  to  weep,  as  if  the  suf- 
ferers were  members  of  his  own  family.  The  letter 
was  addressed  to  the  Chairman  of  the  Congressional 
Committee,  and  was  as  follows  :  — 

"  Dear  Sir,  —  I  have  the  honor  to  enclose  the  photograph 
of  John  Breiring,  with  the  desired  information  written  upon  it.  I 
am  very  sorry  your  committee  could  not  have  seen  these  cases 
when  first  received.  No  one,  from  these  pictures,  can  form  a 
true  estimate  of  their  condition  then  ;  not  one  in  ten  was  able  to 
stand  alone  ;  some  of  them  so  covered  and  eaten  by  vermin  that 
they  nearly  resembled  cases  of  small-pox,  and  so  emaciated  that 
they  were  really  living  skeletons,  and  hardly  that,  as  the  result 
shows,  —  forty  out  of  one  hundred  and  four  having  died  up  to  this 
date.  If  there  has  been  anything  so  horrible,  so  fiendish,  as  this 
wholesale  starvation,  in  the  history  of  this  satanic  Rebellion,  I 
have  failed  to  note  it.  Better  the  massacres  of  Lawrence,  Fort 
Pillow,  and  Plymouth,  than  to  be  thus  starved  to  death  by  inches, 
through  long  and  weary  months." 

Mr.  Lincoln  could  not  consent  to  the  starvation  of 
rebel  prisoners,  nor  to  any  approximation  to  cruel 
treatment.  Retaliation  must  take  some  other  form,  or 
he  would  not  endorse  it.  His  real  sympathy  with  sol- 
diers, in  their  hardships  and  perils,  extended  even  to 
rebel  prisoners  in  our  hands.  At  Frederick,  Md.,  he 
visited  a  house  in  which  there  were  a  large  number  of 


398        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Confederate  wounded  men.     After  viewing  the  scene, 
he  said  to  them  :  — 

"  I  should  be  pleased  to  take  you  all  by  the  hand,  if 
you  have  no  objections.  The  solemn  obligations  which 
we  owe  to  our  country  and  posterity  compel  the 
prosecution  of  this  war.  Many  of  you,  no  doubt^ 
occupy  the  attitude  of  enemies  through  uncontrollable 
circumstances.  I  bear  no  malice  toward  you,  and  can 
take  you  by  the  hand  with  sympathy  and  good  feel 
ing." 

There  was  hesitation  at  first,  but  it  was  soon  broken, 
and  the  Confederates  stepped  forward  to  shake  the 
President's  hand.  Some  of  the  number  were  too  badly 
wounded  to  rise  ;  Mr.  Lincoln  approached  them,  and, 
taking  each  one  by  the  hand  in  turn,  remarked,  — 

"  Be  of  good  cheer,  boys,  and  the  end  will  be  well. 
The  best  of  care  shall  be  taken  of  you." 

It  was  a  touching  scene,  and  there  were  few  dry 
eyes  present.  Many  of  the  Confederates  wept  It  was 
evidently  unexpected  treatment  to  them.  This  was 
the  kind  of  retaliation  in  which  President  Lincoln 
fully  believed.  It  caused  him  unpleasantness  and  pain 
to  be  compelled  to  depart  from  it.  He  heartily  en- 
joyed such  a  scene  as  was  described  to  him  after  the 
battle  of  Antietam. 

One  of  the  agents  of  the  Christian  Commission 
found  several  wounded  Confederate  soldiers  in  a  barn- 
yard, deserted  by  their  surgeons,  and  no  one  near  to 
help  them.  They  had  been  lying  there  with  the 
dead  for  three  days,  without  food  or  drink.  The  agent 
hurried  food  to  them  as  soon  as  possible,  and,  with 
others,  was  proceeding  to  wash  them  when  one  of  the 


HIS  GREA  T  INTEREST  IN  SOLDIERS.        39g 

number,  from  whose  feet   he   was    pulling   his  dirty 
stockings,  began  to  cry  violently. 

"  What's  the  matter?  Do  I  hurt  you  ?"  inquired 
the  agent. 

"No,  you  don't,"  sobbed  the  man. 
.  "What,  then,  can  be  the  matter?    Realty,  I  can't  go 
on   with    my  work   unless   you  tell  me  what   is  the 
matter." 

"  Matter  enough,"  ejaculated  the  Confederate. 
'You  call  us  rebels,  and  I  suppose  we  are;  for  I 
fought  against  the  old  flag  ;  but,  when  we  are  wounded 
you  come  to  us  here,  not  like  angels,  but  like  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  himself,  washing  our  feet ;  and  I 
can't  stand   it.     I  can't  stand  it." 

Such  treatment  of  enemies  just  suited  Mr.  Lincoln. 
The  rehearsal  of  that  single  incident  made  him  happy 
for  a  whole  day. 

In  the  light  of  such  facts,  W.  H.  Herndon,  Esq., 
of  Springfield,  111.,  was  right  in  saying,  — 

"  Through  his  perceptions, — the  suggestiveness  of 
nature,  his  originality,  and  strength ;  through  his 
magnificent  reason,  his  understanding,  his  conscience, 
his  tenderness,  and  kindness,  his  heart,  rather  than 
love,  —  he  approximated  as  nearly  as  most  human 
beings  in  this  imperfect  state  to  an  embodiment  of  the 
great  moral  principle,  '  Do  unto  others  as  ye  would 
they  should  do  unto  you.'  " 

Thousands  of  the  brave  men  who  honored  and 
loved  Abraham  Lincoln  sleep  on  Southern  soil.  They 
went  down  to  the  graves  of  heroes  from  a  thousand 
battle-fields,  through  four  long,  bloody,  dreadful  years  ; 
and  no  heart  throbbed  with  truer  sympathy  for  them 


400       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

in  their  sufferings  than  the  heart  of  the  President ; 
and  no  eyes  shed  hotter  tears  for  their  loss  than  his. 
And  when  the  nation's  offering  was  complete,  and 
there  were  no  more  human  sacrifices  to  be  laid  upon 
the  altar  of  liberty  on  gory  fields,  and  the  ccuntry  was 
jubilant  over  the  final  victory  and  the  return  of  peace, 
the  chieftain  himself  was  added  to  the  hecatomb  of 
loyal  men,  the  tears  and  lamentations  of  a  loving  and 
afflicted  people  consecrating  the  unparalleled  sacrifice ! 
Well  may  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  cherish 
the  memory  of  their  heroic  leader,  whose  thoughts 
were  ever  with  them  on  the  field  of  conflict.  How 
ring  his  beautiful  words,  "  The  mystic  chords  of  memory, 
stretching  from  every  battle-field  and  patriot  grave  to 
every  living  heart  and  hearthstone  all  over  this  broai 
land,  will  yet  swell  the  chorus  of  the  Union,  whe  a 
again  touched,  as  surely  they  will  be,  by  the  better 
angels  ot  our  nature !" 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

HIS   WORK   FOR  THE   COLORED   RACE. 

RESIDENT  LINCOLN'S  life  in  the  White 
House  was  distinguished  by  his  work  for 
the  colored  race.  So  providential  and  im- 
portant were  his  relations  to  both  free  and 
enslaved  negroes,  that  justice  could  not  be  done  to  him 
or  the  subject  without  a  separate  exhibit  of  his  work 
for  them.  He  was,  not  only  "The  Saviour  of  his 
Country/'  but,  also,  "The  Liberator  of  a  Race." 
While  his  great  purpose  was  to  save  the  Union,  giv- 
ing freedom  to  the  slaves  became  absolutely  necessary. 
He  expressed  his  views  in  the  following  clear,  forcible 
and  characteristic  way,  after  three  years  of  war  :  — 

"  I  am  naturally  anti-slavery.  If  slavery  is  not  wrong,  nothing 
is  wrong.  I  cannot  remember  when  I  did  not  see,  think  and  feel 
that  it  was  wrong,  and  yet  I  have  never  understood  that  the 
Presidency  conferred  upon  me  an  unrestricted  right  to  act  of- 
ficially upon  this  judgment  and  feeling.  ...  I  could  not  feel  that, 
to  the  best  of  my  ability,  I  had  tried  to  preserve  the  Constitution, 
if,  to  preserve  slavery  or  any  minor  matter,  I  should  permit  the 
wreck  of  the  government,  country  and  Constitution  altogether. 
...  I  claim  not  to  have  controlled  events,  but  confess  plainly 
that  events  have  controlled  me.  Now,  at  the  end  of  three  years' 
struggle,  the  nation's  condition  is  not  what  either  party  or  any 


402       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


man  devised  or  expected  ;  God  alone  can  claim  it.  Whither  it  is 
tending  seems  plain.  If  God  new  wills  the  removal  of  a  great 
wrong,  and  wills,  also,  that  we  of  the  North  as  well  as  you  of  the 
South  shall  pay  fairly  for  our  complicity  in  that  wrong,  impartia 
nistory  will  find  therein  new  cause  to  attest  and  revere  the  justice 
and  goodness  of  God." 

His  memorable  letter  to  Horace  Greeley  contained 
the  following  passages,  which  will  appear  more  and 
more  remarkable  as  the  ages  roll  on  :  — 

"  If  there  be  tbose  who  would  not  save  the  Union  unless  they 
could  at  the  same  time  save  slavery,  I  do  not  agree  with  them. 

If  there  be  those  who  would  not  save  the  Union  unless  they 
could  at  the  same  time  destroy  slavery,  I  do  not  agree  with 
them. 

My  paramount  object  is  to  save  the  Union,  and  not  either  to 
save  or  destroy  slavery. 

If  I  could  save  the  Union  without  freeing  any  slave,  I  would  do 
it  —  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  all  the  slaves,  I  would  do  it  — 
and  if  I  could  do  it  by  freeing  some  and  leaving  others  alone,  I 
would  also  do  that. 

What  I  do  about  slavery  and  the  colored  race,  I  do  because  it 
helps  to  save  the  Union,  and  what  I  forbear,  I  forbear  because  I 
do  not  believe  it  would  help  to  save  the  Union. 

I  shall  do  less  whenever  I  shall  believe  what  I  am  doing  hurts 
the  cause,  and  I  shall  do  more  whenever  I  believe  doing  more 
will  help  the  cause. 

I  shall  try  to  correct  errors  when  shown  to  be  errors,  and  I 
-hall  adopt  new  views  as  fast  as  they  appear  to  be  true  views. 

I  have  here  stated  my  purpose  according  to  my  view  of  official 
duty,  and  intend  no  modification  of  my  oft-expressed  personal 
wish  that  all  men  everywhere  could  be  free." 

For  independent  thought,  invincible  purpose,  clear 
ness  of  expression,  model  composition,  and  lofty  senti- 
ment, the  foregoing  was  never  excelled  by  American 
statesmen. 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED  RACE.      403 

*■    ' '       — — • 

With  these  principles  and  aims,  Mr.  Lincoln  grap 
pled  with  slavery  —  the  real  cause  of  the  Rebellion  — ■ 
and,  finally,  enlisted  nearly  two  hundred  thousand 
negroes  as  soldiers  in  the  Union  army,  and  gave  liberty 
to  every  slave  in  the  land. 

Sojourner  Truth  was  introduced  to  Mr.  Lincoln  as 
having  "  come  all  the  way  from  Michigan  to  see  you/' 

"I  am  very  much  pleased  to  see  you,"  responded 
Mr.  Lincoln,  rising  from  his  seat,  and  shaking  the  old 
lady's  hand  cordially.     "Take  a  seat." 

"Mr.  President/'  replied  Sojourner,  "when  you  first 
took  your  seat  I  feared  you  would  be  torn  to  pieces, 
for  I  likened  you  unto  Daniel,  who  was  thrown  into 
the  lions'  den  ;  and  if  the  lions  did  not  tear  you  in 
pieces,  I  knew  that  it  would  be  God  that  had  saved 
you  ;  and  I  said  if  he  spared  me  I  would  see  you  before 
the  four  years  expired,  and  He  has  done  so,  and  now  I 
am  here  10  see  you  for  myself." 

"  I  am  truly  glad  that  you  have  been  spared  to  see 
this  day,"  answered  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"  I  appreciate  you,  for  you  are  the  best  President 
who  has  ever  taken  his  seat,"  added  the  old  lady. 

"  I  suppose  you  refer  to  the  emancipation  of  your 
race,"  responded  the  President. 

For  half  an  hour  the  conversation  continued  with  as 
much  cordiality  and  politeness  on  the  part  of  the  Presi- 
dent as  he  would  have  shown  to  the  most  refined  white 
woman  in  Washington. 

At  one  time  he  learned  that  Frederick  Douglas,  the 
distinguished  ex-slave,  was  in  Washington ;  and  he 
sent  his  carriage  to  his  boarding-place,  with  the  mes 
sage  :  "  Come  up  and  take  tea  with  me." 


404       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Mr.  Douglas  accepted  the  invitation ;  and,  for  the 
first  time  in  the  history  of  our  country,  a  colored 
man  became  an  invited  guest  in  the  Executive 
Mansion.  Mr.  Douglas  said  of  that  interview,  sub- 
sequently :  — 

"  Mr.  Lincoln  is  one  of  the  few  white  men  I  ever 
passed  an  hour  with,  who  failed  to  remind  me  in  some 
way,  before  the  interview  terminated,  that  I  am  a 
negro." 

The  children  of  Concord,  Mass.,  sent  a  memorial  to 
him,  praying  for  the  freedom  of  all  slave  children.  He 
replied  to  it  as  follows :  — 

"  Tell  those  little  people  I  am  very  glad  their  young 
hearts  are  so  full  of  just  and  generous  sympathy,  and 
that  while  I  have  not  the  power  to  grant  all  they  ask, 
T  trust  they  will  remember  that  God  has ;  and  that,  as 
it  seems,  He  wills  to  do  it;" 

A  citizen  of  Washington  entered  the  President's 
office  one  day,  and  found  him  counting  greenbacks. 

"This  is  something  out  of  my  usual  line,"  Mr.  Lin. 
coin  remarked;  "but  a  President  of  the  United  States. 
has  a  multitude  of  duties  not  specified  in  the  Constitu- 
tion or  acts  of  Congress." 

The  gentleman  responded  courteously,  hinting  that 
he  would  like  to  know  what  special  duty  was  connected 
with  that  pile  of  greenbacks. 

"This  money  belongs  to  a  poor  negro;  who  is  a 
porter  in  the  Treasury  Department,  at  present  very 
sick  with  the  small-pox.  He  is  now  in  the  hospital, 
and  could  not  draw  his  pay  because  he  could  not  sigj) 
his  name.  I  have  been  to  considerable  trouble  in 
overcoming  the  difficulty,  and  getting  it  for  him,  and 


HIS   WORK  FOR   THE   COLORED  RACE.      405 

cutting  red  tape,  as  you  newspaper  men  say.  I  am 
now  dividing  the  money,  and  putting  by  a  portion, 
labelled,  in  an  envelope,  with  my  own  hands,  according 
to  his  wish."  Thus  the  kind-hearted  man  had  turned 
aside  from  grave  official  duties  to  assist  and  comfort 
one  of  the  humblest  of  God's  creatures  in  his  suffer 
ings  and  sorrow. 

A  delegation  of  colored  men  from  Louisiana  waited 
upon  the  President  to  ask  for  some  additional  rights, 

"  I  regret,  gentlemen,  that  you  are  not  able  to 
secure  all  your  rights,  and  that  circumstances  will  not 
permit  the  government  to  confer  them  upon  you.  I 
wish  you  would  amend  your  petition  so  as  to  include 
several  suggestions  which  I  think  will  give  more  effect 
to  your  prayer,  and,  after  having  done  so,  please  hand 
it  to  me." 

"  If  you  will  permit  me,"  replied  the  chairman  of 
the  delegation,  "  I  will  make  the  alterations  here." 

"  Are  you,  then,  the  author  of  this  eloquent  pro- 
duction ?  "  inquired  Mr.  Lincoln. 

"Whether  eloquent  or  not,  it  is  my  work,"  was  the 
modest  reply ;  and  the  negro  took  his  seat  by  the 
President's  side,  and  made  the  alterations  suggested. 
A  Southern  gentleman  present  concluded  that  Mr. 
Lincoln  did  not  know  that  the  delegation  from  Louisi- 
ana were  "  black  men." 

The  rebel  government  inflicted  inhuman  barbarities 
upon  Union  colored  soldiers  at  Port  Hudson,  Morris 
Island,  and  other  places.  The  knowledge  of  the 
harrowing  facts  reaching  the  President,  he  immediately 
issued  the  following  proclamation  for  the  protection  of 
colored  soldiers :  — 


406       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"Executive  Mansion,  July  30,  1863. 

"  It  is  the  duty  of  every  government  to  give  protection  to  its 
citizens,  of  whatever  class,  color,  or  condition,  especially  those 
who  are  duly  organized  as  soldiers  in  the  public  service.  The 
iaw  of  nations,  and  the  usages  and  customs  of  war,  as  carried  on 
by  civilized  powers,  permit  no  distinction  as  to  color  in  the  treat- 
ment of  prisoners  of  war  as  public  enemies.  To  sell  or  enslave 
my  captured  person  on  account  of  his  color,  and  for  no  offence 
against  the  laws  of  war,  is  a  relapse  into  barbarism,  and  a  crime 
against  the  civilization  of  the  age.  The  Government  of  the 
United  States  will  give  the  same  protection  to  all  its  soldiers  ; 
and  if  the  enemy  shall  sell  or  enslave  any  one  because  of  his 
color,  the  offence  shall  be  punished  by  retaliation  upon  the 
enemy's  prisoners  in  our  possession.  It  is,  therefore,  ordered, 
that  for  every  soldier  of  the  United  States  killed  in  violation  of 
the  laws  of  war,  a  rebel  soldier  shall  be  executed  ;  and  for  every 
one  enslaved  by  the  enemy,  or  sold  into  slavery,  a  rebel  soldier 
shall  be  placed  at  hard  labor  on  the  public  works,  and  continued 
at  such  labor  until  the  other  shall  be  released  and  receive  the 
treatment  due  to  a  prisoner  of  war. 

"  Abraham  Lincoln. 

"  By  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War. 

"  E.  D.  Townsend,  Adjutant-General" 

Here,  again,  is  proof  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  genuine  in- 
terest in  the  soldiers.  Retaliation  was  a  war  measure 
from  which  he  shrank  ;  his  whole  nature  condemned 
it.  And  yet  he  adopted  it,  in  the  circumstances,  as  a 
dire  necessity,  to  protect  the  soldier.  In  no  case 
would  he  consent  to  starve  or  torture  rebel  prisoners 
by  way  of  retaliation  ;  but  he  did  consent  to  take  life 
for  life. 

President  Lincoln  often  expressed  his  admiratior  of 
the  bravery  and  loyalty  of  colored  soldiers,  and  once 
he  said  to  Judge  J.  T.  Mills,  of  Wisconsin  :  — 

u  There  have  been  men  base  enough  to  propose  to 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED  RACE.      4°7 


me  to  return  to  slavery  the  black  warriors  of  Port 
Hudson  and  Olustee,  and  thus  win  the  respect  of  the 
masters  they  fought.  Should  I  do  so,  I  should  deserve 
to  be  damned  in  time  and  eternity.  Come  what  will, 
I  will  keep  my  faith  with  friend  and  foe." 

He  was  applied  to  for  the  pardon  of  a  slave-dealer 
sentenced  to  five  years'  imprisonment  and  a  fine  of  i 
thousand  dollars.  He  had  served  the  five  years  in 
Newburyport  prison,  Massachusetts,  and  was  now  held 
because  he  could  not  pay  the  fine.  Parties  interceded 
for  the  prisoner,  and  bore  from  him  a  very  touching 
letter  to  the  President.  After  having  listened  to  the 
slave-dealer's  advocate,  and  read  his  piteous  letter,  Mr. 
Lincoln  said :  — 

"  That  is  a  very  pathetic  appeal  to  my  feelings.  You 
know  my  weakness  is  to  be,  if  possible,  too  easily  moved 
by  appeals  for  mercy,  and  if  this  man  were  guilty  of 
the  foulest  murder  that  the  arm  of  man  could  perpe- 
trate, I  might  forgive  him  on  such  an  appeal ;  but  the 
man  who  could  go  to  Africa,  and  rob  her  of  her  children, 
and  sell  them  into  interminable  bondage,  with  no  other 
motive  than  that  which  is  furnished  by  dollars  and 
cents,  is  so  much  worse  than  the  most  depraved  mur- 
derer, that  he  can  never  receive  pardon  at  my  hands. 
No!  He  may  rot  in  jail  before  he  shall  have  liberty  by 
any  act  of  mine." 

Before  General  Wadsworth  was  killed  in  the  battle 
of  the  Wilderness,  he  wrote  to  Mr.  Lincoln  and  in- 
quired, "  if  universal  amnesty  should  not  be  accom- 
panied with  universal  suffrage  in  the  event  of  complete 
success  in  the  field." 

Mr.  Lincoln  replied :  "How  to  better  the  condition 


408       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

of  the  colored  race  has  long  been  a  study  which  has 
attracted  my  serious  and  careful  attention;  hence  I 
think  I  am  clear  and  decided  as  to  what  course  I  shall 
pursue  in  the  premises,  regarding  it  a  religious  duty, 
as  the  nation's  guardian  ot  these  people  who  have  so 
heroically  vindicated  their  manhood  on  the  battle-field, 
where,  in  assisting  to  save  the  life  of  the  Republic, 
:hey  have  demonstrated  in  blood  their  right  to  the 
ballot,  which  is  but  the  humane  protection  of  the  flag 
they  have  so  fearlessly  defended." 

The  reverence  of  the  colored  people  for  President 
Lincoln  was  always  great,  but  its  climax  was  reached 
when  the  proclamation  of  emancipation  was  issued. 
At  one  of  his  receptions,  a  large  number  of  colored 
people  gathered  about  the  Executive  Mansion,  and 
waited  two  hours  for  the  crowd  of  white  visitors  to  pass. 
At  length,  they  timidly  advanced  to  the  reception- 
room,  as  if  doubting  whether  they  would  be  welcome, 
when  Mr.  Lincoln  met  them  with  one  of  his  sweetest 
smiles,  and  encouraged  them  to  take  his  hand.  Their 
joy  was  unbounded,  and  they  gave  vent  to  their  feel- 
ings in  the  wildest  manner.  An  eye-witness  says, 
66  They  laughed  and  wept,  and  wept  and  laughed,  ■ — 
exclaiming  through  their  blinding  tears,  '  God  bless 
you ! '  '  God  bless  Abraham  Lincoln  ! '  *  God  bless 
Massa  Linkum ! '  " 

Miss  Canedy,  of  Fall  River,  Mass.,  was  teaching  the 
colored  people  at  Norfolk,  Va.,  and  in  her  school-room 
was  a  plaster  bust  of  Mr.  Lincoln.  One  day  she 
showed  it  to  some  colored  men  who  were  at  work 
around  the  building,  remarking  about  their  benefactor. 
Their  exclamations  were  as  follows  :  — ■ 


HIS  WORK  FOR   THE   COLORED  RACE.       fOg 

"  He's  brought  us  safe  through  the  Red  Sea." 

"  He  looks  as  deep  as  the  sea  himself." 

"He's  king  of  the  United  States." 

"He  ought  to  be  king  of  the  world." 

"  We  must  all  pray  to  the  Lord  to  carry  him  safe 
Jirough,  for  it  'pears  like  he's  got  everything  hitched 
to  him." 

"  There  has  been  a  right  smart  praying  for  him,  and 
it  must  n't  stop  now." 

President  Lincoln's  entrance  into  Richmond,  after 
the  rebel  forces  were  driven  out,  was  the  signal  for 
great  rejoicing  among  the  colored  people.  He  entered 
the  conquered  city  on  foot,  attended  only  by  "  Tad  " 
und  the  sailors  who  rowed  him  up  the  James  river.  So 
quiet  and  unpretentious  was  his  advent,  that  the  ne- 
groes were  taken  by  surprise ;  and,  when  they  found 
that  the  "Great  Emancipator"  was  actually  there,  their 
joy  knew  no  bound.  Some  of  them  shouted;  many  of 
them  cried ;  all  of  them  were  frantic  with  delight. 
"Glory  to  God!"  "Glory!"  "Glory!"  "Glory!"  was 
the  hearty  tribute  of  the  liberated  slaves. 

"  I  thank  you,  dear  Jesus,  that  I  behold  President 
Linkum,"  exclaimed  a  woman  on  the  street,  crying 
^ike  a  child. 

"Bless  de  Lord!  Bless  de  Lord!  Bless  de  Lord!" 
3xclaimecT:  several,  jumping  up  and  down  as  if  bereft  of 
their  reason. 

An  ey^-witness  says,  "  An  old  negro  cried  out,  '  May 
de  good  Lord  bless  you,  President  Linkum ! '  while  he 
removed  his  hat,  and  the  tears  of  joy  rolled  down  his 
dieeks.  The  President  removed  his  own  hat,  and 
oowed  in  silence ;  but  it  was  a  bow  which  upset  the 


4IO       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


forms,  laws,  customs,  and  ceremonies  of  centuries.  It 
was  a  death  shock  to  '  chivalry/  and  a  mortal  wound 
to  caste." 

Colonel  McKaye,  Robert  Dale  Owen,  and  one  or 
two  other  gentlemen,  were  appointed  by  President 
Lincoln  to  investigate  the  condition  of  the  freedmen 
on  the  coast  of  North  Carolina.  When  they  reported 
to  Mr.  Lincoln,  Colonel  McKaye  related  the  following 
incident,  as  given  by  Mr.  Carpenter:  — 

"  He  had  been  speaking  of  the  ideas  of  power  enter- 
tained by  these  people.  He  said  they  had  an  idea  of 
God,  as  the  Almighty,  and  they  had  realized  in  their 
former  condition  the  power  of  their  masters.  Up  to 
the  time  of  the  arrival  among  them  of  the  Union  forces, 
they  had  no  knowledge  of  any  other  power.  Their 
masters  fled  upon  the  approach  of  our  soldiers,  and 
this  gave  the  slaves  a  conception  of  a  power  greater 
than  that  exercised  by  them.  This  power  they  called 
'Massa  Linkum.' 

"  Colonel  McKaye  said  that  their  place  of  worship 
was  a  large  building  which  they  called  'the  praise 
house;'  and  the  leader  of  the  meeting,  a  venerable 
black  man,  was  known  as  'the  praise  man/  On  a 
certain  day,  when  there  was  quite  a  large  gathering  of 
people,  considerable  confusion  was  created  by  different 
persons  attempting  to  tell  who  and  what  '  Massa  Lin- 
kum '  was.  In  the  midst  of  the  excitement  the  white- 
headed  leader  commanded  silence.  '  Brederin,5  *said 
he,  'you  don't  know  nosen'  what  you'se  talkin'  'bout. 
Now,  you  just  listen  to  me.  Massa  Linkum,  he  ebery 
whar.  He  know  eberyting.'  Then,  solemnly  looking 
up,  he  added,  '  He  walk  de  earf  tike  de  Lord  ! ' 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED  RACE.      4Ii 

"  Colonel  McKaye  told  me  that  Mr.  Lincoln  seemed 
much  affected  by  this  account.  He  did  not  smile,  as 
another  man  might  have  done,  but  got  up  from  his 
chair,  and  walked  in  silence  two  or  three  times  across 
Che  floor.  As  he  resumed  his  seat,  he  said,  very  im- 
pressively :  '  It  is  a  momentous  thing  to  be  the  instru 
ment,  under  Providence,  of  the  liberation  of  a  race/  '' 

The  colored  people  of  Baltimore  presented  the 
President  with  a  very  costly  and  beautiful  copy  of  the 
Bible.  Three  colored  clergymen  and  two  laymen  were 
the  committee  to  present  it.  The  address  accompany- 
ing the  gift  was  tender  and  reverential,  to  which  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  replied  in  a  characteristic  speech,  in  which 
he  said  of  the  Bible  :  — 

"  It  is  the  best  gift  which  God  has  ever  given  to 
man.  All  the  good  from  the  Saviour  of  the  world  is 
communicated  to  us  through  this  book.  But  for  that 
book  we  could  not  know  right  from  wrong.  All  those 
truths  desirable  for  men  are  contained  in  it.  I  return 
you  my  sincere  thanks  for  the  very  elegant  copy  of  the 
great  Book  of  God  which  you  present.' ' 

The  Bible  bore  the  following  inscription  :  — 

"  To  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States,  the 
Tnend  of  Universal  Freedom.  From  the  loyal  colored  people  of 
Baltimore,  as  a  token  of  respect  and  gratitude.  Baltimore,  July 
4th,  1864." 

A  colored  woman  of  Philadelphia  presented  him  with 
a  collection  of  wax-fruits,  with  an  ornamented  stem- 
table —  an  elegant  affair.  Her  pastor,  Mr.  Hamilton, 
made  the  presentation  address,  but  closed  by  saying, 
"  perhaps  Mrs.  Johnson  would  like  to  say  a  few  words." 


412        PIONEER  HOME    TO   WHITE  HOUSE. 

What  Mrs.  Johnson  did  is  best  told  in  her  own  words: 
"  I  looked  down  to  the  floor,  and  felt  that  I  had  not  a 
word  to  say,  but  after  a  moment  or  two,  the  fire  began 
to  burn  (laying  her  hand  on  her  breast),  and  it  burned 
and  burned  ti'l  it  went  all  over  me.  I  think  it  was  the 
Spirit,  and  I  looked  up  to  him  and  said  :  '  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, I  believe  God  has  hewn  you  out  of  a  rock,  foi 
this  great  and  mighty  purpose.  Many  have  been  led 
away  by  bribes  of  gold,  of  silver,  of  presents ;  but  you 
have  stood  firm,  because  God  was  with  you,  and  if  you 
are  faithful  to  the  end,  he  will  be  with  you.'  With  his 
eyes  full  of  tears,  he  walked  round  and  examined  the 
present,  pronounced  it  beautiful,  thanked  me  kindly, 
but  said  :  '  You  must  not  give  me  the  praise  —  it  be- 
longs to  God.'  " 

Some  public  men  desired  Mr.  Lincoln  to  issue  his 
Proclamation  of  Emancipation  long  before  he  did. 
Delegations  waited  upon  him  to  express  their  wishes  in 
that  direction.  To  a  delegation  of  clergymen  from  Chi- 
cago, who  urged  the  measure  upon  him,  he  replied :-  - 

"  I  do  not  want  to  issue  a  document  that  the  whole 
world  will  see  must  necessarily  be  inoperative,  like  the 
Pope's  bull  against  the  comet/' 

After  some  discussion,  however,  he  assured  them 
that  "the  subject  was  upon  his  mind  night  and  day, 
more  than  any  other ;"  and  he  added,  "Whatever  shal1 
appear  to  be  God's  will,  I  will  do." 

He  called  a  special  Cabinet  meeting  two  or  three 
weeks  before  the  battle  of  Antietam,  and  announced 
to  the  members  :  — 

"I  have  prepared  a  proclamation  of  emancipation, 
believing  that  the  time  has  come  to  issue  it.     I  have 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED  RACE      4x3 


not  called  you  together  for  advice  on  the  general  sub- 
ject, for  I  have  settled  that,  I  simply  desire  to  inform 
you  of  my  purpose,  and  receive  such  suggestions  as 
you  may  make." 

The  members  were  somewhat  surprised,  but  ex- 
pressed a  strong  desire  to  hear  it  read.  The  President 
proceeded  to  read  it  in  a  slow,  clear  voice,  evidently 
impressed  with  the  grave  responsibility  he  was  taking 
upon  himself.  When  he  had  finished  reading  the 
document,  and  opened  the  way  for  suggestions,  Secre- 
tary Chase  remarked : 

"  I  would  like  to  have  the  language  stronger  with 
reference  to  arming  the  blacks." 

"I  think  it  is  bad  policy  to  issue  it  now,"  said  the 
Attorney  General.  "It  will  cost  the  administration 
the  fall  elections."  It  was  then  about  the  first  of  Sep- 
tember, 1862. 

"All  these  questions  I  have  carefully  considered, 
gentlemen,"  was  Mr.  Lincoln's  response. 

Secretary  Seward  remarked,  at  this  point :  — 

"Mr.  President,  I  approve  of  the  proclamation,  but 
I  question  the  expediency  of  its  issue  at  this  juncture. 
The  depression  of  the  public  mind  consequent  upon 
our  repeated  reverses  is  so  great  that  I  fear  the  effect 
jf  so  important  a  step.  It  may  be  viewed  as  the  last 
measure  of  an  exhausted  government  —  a  cry  for  help 
—the  government  stretching  forth  its  hand  to  Ethio- 
pia, instead  of  Ethiopia  stretching  forth  its  hand  to 
the  government  —  our  last  shriek  on  the  retreat.  I 
think  it  would  be  best  to  delay  it  until  it  can  be  given 
to  the  country  supported  by  military  success,  rather 
than  after  the  greatest  disasters  of  the  war." 


414       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"That  is  a  thought  that  has  not  occurred  to  me," 
immediately  replied  the  President,  "I  shall  adopt  the 
suggestion  at  once,  and  await  a  signal  victory." 

Before  the  discussion  ceased,  however,  Secretary 
Seward  made  another  suggestion  :  -  • 

"  Mr.  President,  I  think  that  you  should  insert,  after 
the  word  i recognize,'  the  words  'and  maintain.'" 

"  I  have  fully  considered  the  import  of  that  expres- 
sion," answered  Mr.  Lincoln;  "but  it  is  not  my  way 
to  promise  more  than  I  am  sure  I  can  perform,  and  I 
am  not  prepared  to  say  that  I  can  '  maintain '  this." 

"  Nevertheless  that  ground  should  be  taken,"  con- 
tinued the  Secretary.  "  The  dignity  of  the  government 
and  the  completeness  of  the  proclamation  require  it." 

After  a  moment  of  serious  thoughtfulness,  the  Presi- 
dent responded,  "  You  are  right,  Seward,  and  the  words 
shall  go  in." 

The  proclamation  was  laid  aside  until  the  battle  of 
Antietam  was  fought.  Mr.  Lincoln  waited  until  he 
was  satisfied  that  a  valuable  victory  had  been  achieved, 
when  he  called  the  Cabinet  together  again,  at  a  special 
meeting,  and  announced :  — 

"The  time  has  come  for  emancipation  to  be  declared ; 
it  cannot  longer  be  delayed.  Public  sentiment  will  now 
sustain  it,  many  of  my  warmest  friends  and  supporters 
demand  it,  and  I  promised  my  God  I  would  do  it." 

The  last  sentence  was  not  quite  understood  by  Sec- 
retary Chase,  who  asked  for  an  explanation.  Mr. 
Lincoln  replied:  — 

"  /  made  a  solemn  vow  before  God,  that  if  General 
Lee  was  driven  back  from  Pennsylvania,  I  would  crown 
the  result  by  the  declaration  of  freedom  to  the  slave" 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED   RACE.      415 

The  Cabinet  unanimously  endorsed  the  President's 
decision,  and  the  proclamation  was  issued  September 
22,  1862,  promising,  "  That  on  the  first  day  of  January, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  sixty-three,  all  persons  held  as  slaves  within  any 
State,  or  any  designated  part  of  a  State,  the  people 
whereof  shall  then  be  in  rebellion  against  the  United 
States,  shall  be  then,  thenceforward  and  forever,  free ; 
and  the  executive  government  of  the  United  States, 
including  the  military  and  naval  authority  thereof,  will 
recognize  and  maintain  the  freedom  of  such  persons, 
and  will  do  no  act  or  acts  to  repress  such  persons,  or 
any  of  them,  in  any  efforts  they  may  make  for  their 
actual  freedom." 

This  proclamation  offended  many  anti-slavery  friends 
at  the  North,  who  wanted  the  President  to  strike  an 
immediate  and  fatal  blow  at  the  institution,  without 
warning  or  conditions.  It  is  believed,  however,  that  sub- 
sequent events  caused  them,  and  the  civilized  world,  to 
concur  in  the  President's  judgment  of  the  best  method, 
in  the  circumstances.  At  the  South,  the  excitement 
over  the  proclamation  of  promised  freedom  was  intense, 
and  the  Rebel  Congress  enacted  some  violent  threats. 
But  the  one  hundred  days  of  grace  passed  by,  and  the 
memorable  first  day  of  January,  1863,  arrived,  bringing 
the  Proclamation  of  Emancipation,  which  deserves 
the  highest  place  in  the  temple  of  American  liberty. 
It  merits  the  careful  perusal  of  every  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  old  and  young,  and  commends  itself  to 
the  friends  of  humanity  in  every  land. 

President  Lincoln  signed  the  Proclamation  after  hi? 
public  reception  on  January  first,  1863.  Mr.  Coif  a? 
remarked  to  him,  — 


41 6       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  The  signature  appears  somewhat  tremulous  and 
uneven." 

"  Not  because  of  any  uncertainty  or  hesitation  on 
my  part,"  answered  the  President;  "but  it  was  just 
after  the  public  reception,  and  three  hours'  hand- 
shaking is  not  calculated  to  improve  a  man's  chi- 
rography.  The  South  had  fair  warning,  that  if  they 
did  not  return  to  their  duty,  I  should  strike  at  this  pillar 
of  their  strength.  The  promise  must  now  be  kept, 
and  I  shall  never  recall  cne  word." 

Mr.  Carpenter's  noble  conception  of  a  painting  to 
commemorate  the  act  of  Emancipation  enlisted  the 
President's  deepest  interest.  When  the  work  was 
nearly  completed,  the  artist  remarked  to  him, — 

"  I  am  very  proud  to  have  been  the  artist  to  have 
first  conceived  the  idea  of  the  design  of  painting  a 
picture  commemorative  of  the  Act  of  Emancipation." 

"Yes,"  answered  the  President,  "as  affairs  have 
turned,  it  is  the  central  act  of  my  administration,  and 
the  great  event  of  the  nineteenth  century." 

When  Mr.  Carpenter's  work  was  done,  and  he  was 
about  to  take  leave  of  the  White  House,  the  President 
said,  — 

"  Well,  Mr.  Carpenter,  I  must  go  with  you  and  take 
one  more  look  at  the  picture  before  you  leave  us." 

The  parting  interview  with  the  artist  before  the 
picture  was  very  interesting ;  and  President  Lincoln 
closed  it  in  his  familiar  way,  by  saying :  — 

"  Mr.  Carpenter,  I  believe  that  I  am  about  as  glad 
over  the  success  of  this  work  as  you  are." 

This  chapter  would  be  incomplete  without  the 
J^TTcWmation  of  Emancipation,  which  must  ever  be  a 


HIS  WORK  FOR    THE   COLORED  RACE.      417 

memorable   document    in    the   future   history   of   our 
country.     We  furnish  it  complete  :  — 

"  Whereas,  on  the  twenty-second  day  of  September,  in  the  year 
of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty-two,  a  pro- 
clamation was  issued  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  con- 
taining, among  other  things,  the  following,  to  wit : 

u  That  on  tre  first  day  of  January,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty-three,  all  persons  held  as  slaves 
within  any  State,  or  designated  part  of  a  State,  the  people  whereof 
shall  then  be  in  rebellion  against  the  United  States,  shall  be 
then,  thenceforth  and  forever  free,  and  the  Executive  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  including  the  military  and  naval 
authorities  thereof,  will  recognize  and  maintain  the  freedom  of 
such  persons,  and  will  do  no  act  or  acts  to  repress  such  persons, 
or  any  of  them,  in  any  efforts  they  may  make  for  their  actual 
freedom. 

"  That  the  Executive  will,  on  the  first  day  of  January  afore- 
said, by  proclamation,  designate  the  States  and  parts  of  States, 
if  any,  in  which  the  people  therein  respectively  shall  then  be  in 
rebellion  against  the  United  States,  and  the  fact  that  any  State, 
or  the  people  thereof,  shall  on  that  day  be  in  good  faith  repre- 
sented in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  by  members  chosen 
thereto,  at  elections  wherein  a  majority  of  the  qualified  voters 
of  such  States  shall  have  participated,  shall,  in  the  absence  ot 
strong  countervailing  testimony,  be  deemed  conclusive  evidence 
that  such  State  or  the  people  thereof  are  not  then  in  rebellion 
against  the  United  States.5' 

"  Now,  therefore,  I,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United 
States,  by  virtue  of  the  power  in  me  vested  as  Commander-in- 
chief  of  the  Army  and  Navy  of  the  United  States  in  time  of  ac- 
tual armed  rebellion  against  the  authority  and  Government  of  the 
United  States,  and  as  a  fit  and  necessary  war  measure  for  sup- 
pressing said  rebellion,  do,  on  this  first  day  of  January,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty-three, 
and  in  accordance  with  my  purpose  so  to  do,  publicly  proclaimed 
for  the  full  period  of  one  hundred  days  from  the  day  of  the  first 
above-mentioned  order,  designate    as  the   States  and  parts  of 


41 8       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

States  wherein  the  people  thereof  respectively  are  this  day  in  re« 
bellion  against  the  United  States,  the  following,  to  wit :  Arkansas, 
Texas,  Louisiana,  except  the  parishes  of  St.  Bernard,  Plaque- 
mines, Jefferson,  St.  John,  St.  Charles,  St.  James,  Ascension, 
Assumption,  Terre  Bonne,  Lafourche,  St.  Mary,  St.  Martin  and 
Orleans,  including  the  City  of  New  Orleans,  Mississippi,  Ala- 
bama, Florida,  Georgia,  South  Carolina,  North  Carolina,  and 
Virginia,  except  the  forty-eight  counties  designated  as  West  Vir- 
ginia, and  also  the  counties  of  Berkeley,  Accomac,  Northampton, 
Elizabeth  City,  York,  Princess  Ann,  and  Norfolk,  including  the 
cities  of  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth,  and  which  excepted  parts  are, 
for  the  present,  left  precisely  as  if  this  proclamation  were  not  issued. 

"  And  by  virtue  of  the  power,  and  for  the  purpose  aforesaid,  I 
do  order  and  declare  that  all  persons  held  as  slaves  within  said 
designated  States,  and  parts  of  States,  are,  and  henceforward 
shall  be  free  ;  and  that  the  Executive  Government  of  the  United 
States,  including  the  Military  and  Naval  authorities  thereof,  will 
recognize  and  maintain  the  freedom  of  such  persons. 

"  And  I  hereby  enjoin  upon  the  people  so  declared  to  be  iree, 
to  abstain  from  all  violence,  unless  in  necessary  self-defence,  and 
I  recommend  to  them  that  in  all  cases,  when  allowed,  they  labor 
faithfully  for  reasonable  wages. 

"  And  I  further  declare  and  make  known  that  such  persons  of 
suitable  condition  will  be  received  into  the  armed  service  of  the 
United  States  to  garrison  forts,  positions,  stations,  and  other 
places,  and  to  man  vessels  of  all  sorts  in  said  service. 

"  And  upon  this,  sincerely  believed  to  be  an  act  of  justice,  war- 
ranted by  the  Constitution,  upon  military  necessity,  I  invoke  the 
considerate  judgment  of  mankind  and  the  gracious  favor  of  Al- 
mighty God. 

"In  witness  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand,  and  caused 
the  seal  of  the  United  States  to  be  affixed. 

"  Done  at  the  City  of  Washington,  this  first  day  of 
January,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight 

L  '     J      hundred  and  sixty-three,  and  of  the  Independence  of 
the  United  States  of  America  the  eighty-seventh." 

"  By  the  President :  "  Abraham  Lincoln. 

h  William  H.  Seward,  Secretary  of  State" 


HIS  WORK   FOR    THE   COLORED   RACE.      419 

Speaker  Colfax  said  of  Mr.  Lincoln  and  his  procla- 
mation, when  the  great  man  died  :  — 

"  The  great  act  of  the  mighty  chieftain,  on  which  his 
fame  shall  rest  long  after  his  frame  shall  moulder  away, 
is  that  of  giving  freedom  to  a  race.  We  have  all  been 
taught  to  revere  the  sacred  characters.  Among  them 
Moses  stands  pre-eminently  high.  He  received  the  law 
from  God,  and  his  name  is  honored  among  the  hosts  of 
heaven.  Was  not  his  greatest  act  the  delivering  three 
millions  of  his  kindred  out  of  bondage  ?  Yet  we  may 
assert  that  Abraham  Lincoln,  by  his  proclamation, 
liberated  more  enslaved  people  than  ever  Moses  set 
free,  and  those  not  of  his  kindred  or  his  race.  Such  a 
power,  or  such  an  opportunity,  God  has  seldom  given 
to  man.  When  other  events  shall  have  been  forgot- 
ten ;  when  this  world  shall  have  become  a  network  of 
republics ;  when  every  throne  shall  be  swept  from  the 
face  of  the  earth ;  when  literature  shall  enlighten  all 
minds ;  when  the  claims  of  humanity  shall  be  recog- 
nized everywhere,  this  act  shall  be  conspicuous  on  the 
pages  of  history.  We  are  thankful  that  God  gave  to 
Abraham  Lincoln  wisdom  and  grace  to  issue  that 
proclamation,  which  stands  high  above  all  other  papers 
which  have  been  penned  by  uninspired  men." 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

STILL   IN  THE   WHITE    HOUSE. 

|R.  LINCOLN  was  renominated  for  a  second 
term  in  the  summer  of  1864.  There  were 
not  wanting  leaders  who  opposed  his  re- 
nomination.  He  was  too  slow  and  too  kind 
to  suit  them.  But  their  opposition  was  short-lived. 
When  the  National  Convention  assembled  in  Balti- 
more, the  current  of  enthusiasm  for  Mr.  Lincoln  swept 
away  all  opposition.  Intelligence  from  the  army  proved 
that  one  feeling  pervaded  the  rank  and  file,  —  the 
"  boys  "  demanded  the  renomination  of  "  Father  Abra- 
ham." The  colonel  of  a  regiment  on  the  Potomac,  in 
which  were  many  Democrats,  reported  a  conversation 
among  his  men,  as  follows  :  — 

"Who  are  you  for,  Joe?"  inquired  one  of  a  Demo- 
crat. 

"Father  Abraham,  of  course  ;  a  new  man  would  up- 
set things,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Who  knows  but  a  new  man  might  hurry  up  the 
end  of  this  Rebellion !"  interjected  another. 

"But  we  know  who  we  have  now  for  President,"  re- 
sponded the  Democrat ;  "but  when  you  have  a  new  man 
you  must  wait  to  find  out." 


STILL  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  42 1 

"That's  so,"  loudly  answered  a  comrade  *  "no  time 
for  an  armistice  now." 

"Soldiers  think  too  much  of  Lincoln  to  swap  him  off 
now  for  somebody  else,"  remarked  another. 

And  so  the  discussion  proceeded,  until  a  German, 
who  had  remained  a  silent  listener,  spoke  : 

"  I  goes  for  Fader  Abraham,"  he  said.  "  Fader  Abra- 
ham, he  likes  the  soldier-boy.  Ven  he  serves  tree 
years  he  gives  him  four  hundred  dollar,  and  re-enlists 
him  von  veteran.  Now  Fader  Abraham,  he  serve  four 
years.  We  re-enlist  him  four  years  more,  and  make 
von  veteran  of  him!' 

The  German  settled  the  question  in  that  regiment ; 
and  it  was  about  a  fair  representation  of  the  feeling 
throughout  the  Union  army. 

In  the  convention,  the  votes  of  every  State  except 
Missouri  were  cast  for  Mr.  Lincoln.  Her  twenty-two 
votes  were  cast  for  General  Grant,  but,  immediately 
upon  the  announcement  of  the  ballot,  they  were  trans- 
ferred  to  Mr.  Lincoln. 

In  less  than  two  months  after  his  renomination,  the 
President  resolved  to  issue  a  call  for  five  hundred 
thousand  more  troops.  On  laying  the  subject  before 
his  Cabinet,  objections  were  provoked  at  once. 

"  It  will  prove  disastrous,"  said  one. 

"It  will  defeat  your  re-election,  Mr.  President,"  sug- 
gested another. 

"  It  will  furnish  material  for  your  enemies  co  use 
against  you  ;  the  people  are  tired  of  the  war,"  added 
the  first-named  speaker. 

For  quite  a  while  the  measure  was  discussed  ;  and 
the  President  listened  with  his  accustomed  deference, 


422        PIONEER   HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

occasionally  dropping  a  word.  At  length,  however,  he 
settled  the  matter  beyond  controversy.  Rising  from 
his  seat,  and  assuming  that  commanding  attitude  so 
asual  when  he  was  about  to  make  a  noble  stand,  he 
remarked,  with  profound  seriousness,  as  well  as  em- 
phasis :  — 

"  Gentlemen,  it  is  not  necessary  that  I  should  be 
re-elected,  but  it  is  necessary  that  our  brave  boys  at 
che  front  should  be  supported,  and  the  country  saved. 
I  shall  call  for  five  hundred  thousand  more  men,  and 
if  I  go  down  under  the  measure,  I  will  go  down  like 
the  '  Cumberland'  with  my  colors  flying." 

God  crowned  his  noble  decision  with  success.  He 
Jid  not  go  down  like  the  "  Cumberland"  or  any  other 
riddled  gunboat.  Opposition  hid  itself  before  the  on- 
ward march  of  his  popularity.  He  was  re-elected  by 
the  largest  majority  ever  known  in  presidential  elec- 
tions. His  popular  majority  was  411,428,  in  a  total 
vote  of  4,015,902;  and  he  had  212  of  the  233  votes  in 
the  electoral  college.  On  being  publicly  congratulated 
upon  this  emphatic  endorsement,  President  Lincoln 
said :  -  - 

"  I  am  thankful  to  God  for  this  approval  of  the  peo- 
ple. But,  while  deeply  grateful  for  this  mark  of  their 
.confidence  in  me,  if  I  know  my  heart,  my  gratitude  is 
free  from  any  taint  of  personal  triumph.  I  do  not  im- 
pugn the  motives  of  any  one  opposed  to  me.  It  is  no 
pleasure  to  me  to  triumph  over  any  one  ;  but  I  give 
thanks  to  the  Almighty  for  this  evidence  of  the  peo- 
ple's resolution  to  stand  by  free  government,  and  the 
rights  of  humanity." 

The  re-election  of  President  Lincoln  was  equal  to 


STILL  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  423 

the  addition  of  five  hundred  thousand  more  soldiers  to 
the  Union  army.  It  destroyed  the  last  hope  of  the 
Rebellion.  It  was  staggering  when  the  day  of  the 
election  arrived ;  and  from  that  time  its  fall  was  rapidly 
accelerated. 

On  the  fourth  day  of  March,  1865,  his  second  inaugur- 
ation as  President  of  the  United  States  occurred.  A 
great  concourse  of  people  witnessed  the  imposing  cere* 
monies,  and  listened  to  his  remarkable  inaugural  ad- 
dress. According  to  the  national  custom,  Mr.  Lincoln 
kissed  the  open  Bible,  after  having  taken  the  oath  of 
office.  Mr.  Middleton,  who  passed  the  Bible  to  him, 
instantly  marked  the  verses  touched  by  the  President's 
lips.  They  were  the  26th  and  27th  verses  of  the 
Fifth  chapter  of  Isaiah,  and  read  as  follows  :  — 

"And  he  will  lift  up  an  ensign  to  the  nations,  and  will  hiss 
unto  them  from  the  end  of  the  earth  ;  and,  behold,  they  shall 
come  with  speed  swiftly ;  none  shall  be  weary  nor  stumble  among 
them ;  none  shall  slumber  nor  sleep ;  neither  shall  the  girdle  of 
their  loins  be  loosed,  nor  the  latchet  of  their  shoes  be  broken." 

The  speedy  overthrow  of  the  Rebellion  furnished  a 
remarkable  interpretation  of  these  words ;  and  they 
are  choice  words  of  prophecy  to  be  forever  associated 
with  President  Lincoln's  memory. 

His  inaugural  address  on  that  occasion  has  been  de- 
clared to  be  the  most  remarkable  State  paper  extant. 

It  has  often  been  classed  with  the  "  Farewell  Ad- 
dress "  of  Washington  ;  as  it  proved,  indeed,  the  fare- 
well address  of  Lincoln  to  the  American  people.  And 
as  Washington's  life  would  be  incomplete  without  the 
former,  so  Lincoln's  life  would  lack  an  essential  fact 


424        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


without  the  latter.     The  address  was  brief,  direct,  and 
affecting,  as  follows  :  --- 

Fellow-Countrymen,  —  At  this  second  appearing  to  take  the 
oath  of  the  presidential  office,  there  is  less  occasion  for  an  ex 
tended  address  than  there  was  at  first.  Then,  a  statement,  some- 
what in  detail,  of  a  course  to  be  pursued,  seemed  fitting  and  proper. 
Now,  at  the  expiration  of  four  years,  during  which  public  declara 
tions  have  been  constantly  called  forth  on  every  point  and  phase 
of  the  great  contest  which  still  absorbs  the  attention  and  engrosses 
the  energies  of  the  nation,  little  that  is  new  could  be  presented. 
The  progress  of  our  arms,  upon  v/hich  all  else  chiefly  depends,  is 
as  well  known  to  the  public  as  to  myself;  and  it  is,  I  trust,  reason- 
ably satisfactory  and  encouraging  to  all.  With  high  hope  for  the 
future,  no  prediction  in  regard  to  it  is  ventured. 

On  the  occasion  corresponding  to  this  four  years  ago,  all 
thoughts  were  anxiously  directed  to  an  impending  civil  war.  All 
dreaded  it  —  all  sought  to  avert  it.  While  the  inaugural  address 
was  being  delivered  from  this  place,  devoted  altogether  to  saving 
the  Union  without  war,  insurgent  agents  were  in  the  city  seeking 
to  destroy  it  without  war  —  seeking  to  dissolve  the  Union  and 
divide  effects  by  negotiation.  Both  parties  deprecated  war ;  but 
one  of  them  would  make  war  rather  than  let  the  nation  survive  ; 
and  the  other  would  accept  war  rather  than  let  it  perish.  And 
the  war  came. 

One-eighth  of  the  whole  population  were  colored  slaves,  not 
distributed  generally  over  the  Union,  but  localized  in  the  southern 
part  of  it.  These  slaves  constituted  a  peculiar  and  powerful 
interest.  All  knew  that  this  interest  was,  somehow,  the  cause  of 
the  war.  To  strengthen,  perpetuate,  and  extend  this  interest  was 
the  object  for  which  the  insurgents  would  rend  the  Union,  even 
by  war  ;  while  the  government  claimed  no  right  to  do  more  than 
to  restrict  the  territorial  enlargement  of  it.  Neither  party  ex- 
pected for  the  war  the  magnitude  or  the  duration  which  it  has 
already  attained.  Neither  anticipated  that  the  cause  of  the  con- 
flict might  cease  with,  or  even  before,  the  conflict  itself  should 
cease.  Each  looked  for  an  easier  triumph,  and  a  result  less 
fundamental  and  astounding.      Both  read   the  same  Bible  and 


STILL  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  \2*> 

pray  to  the  same  God  ;  and  each  invokes  his  aid  against  the 
other.  It  may  seem  strange  that  any  men  should  dare  to  ask  a 
just  God's  assistance  in  wringing  their  bread  from  the  sweat  of 
other  men's  faces  ;  but  let  us  judge  not,  that  we  be  not  judged. 
The  prayers  of  both  could  not  be  answered  —  that  of  neither  has 
been  answered  fully.  The  Almighty  has  His  own  purposes. 
"Woe  unto  the  world  because  of  offences  !  for  it  must  needs  be 
that  offences  come ;  but  woe  to  that  man  by  whom  the  offence 
cometh.,,  If  we  shall  suppose  that  American  slavery  is  one  of 
those  offences  which,  in  the  Providence  of  God,  must  needs  come 
but  which,  having  continued  through  His  appointed  time,  He  now 
wills  to  remove,  and  that  he  gives  to  both  North  and  South  this 
terrible  war  as  the  woe  due  to  those  by  whom  the  offence  came, 
shall  we  discern  therein  any  departure  from  those  divine  attri- 
butes which  the  believers  in  a  living  God  always  ascribe  to  Him  ? 
Fondly  do  we  hope  —  fervently  do  we  pray  —  that  this  mighty 
scourge  of  war  may  speedily  pass  away.  Yet,  if  God  wills  that  it 
continue  until  all  the  wealth  piled  by  the  bondman's  two  hundred 
and  fifty  years  of  unrequited  toil  shall  be  sunk,  and  until  every  drop 
of  blood  drawn  by  the  lash  shall  be  paid  by  another  drawn  with  the 
sword,  as  was  said  three  thousand  years  ago,  so  still  it  must  be  said, 
"  The  judgments  of  the  Lord  are  true  and  righteous  altogether." 

With  malice  toward  none  ;  with  charity  for  all  ;  with  firmness 
in  the  right,  as  God  gives  us  to  see  the  right,  let  us  strive  to  finish 
the  work  we  are  engaged  in  ;  to  bind  up  the  nation's  wounds  ;  to 
care  for  him  who  shall  have  borne  the  battle,  and  for  his  widow 
and  his  orphan  —  to  do  all  which  may  achieve  and  cherish  a  just 
and  lasting  peace  among  ourselves,  and  with  all  nations. 

Charles  Sumner  said  of  this  address  :  "  The  Inaugv* 
ral  Address  which  signalized  his  entry  for  a  second 
time  upon  his  great  duties  was  briefer  than  any  similar 
address  in  our  history ;  but  it  has  already  gone  farther, 
and  will  iive  longer,  than  any  other.  It  was  a  continu- 
ation of  the  Gettysburg  speech,  with  the  same  sublimity 
and  gentleness.  Its  concluding  words  were  like  an 
angelic  benediction." 


426       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

The  subject  of  Civil  Service  Reform,  which  provokes 
so  much  discussion  at  the  present  time,  engaged  the 
attention  of  Mr.  Lincoln  at  the  time  he  entered  upon 
the  second  term  of  his  presidential  career.  He  re 
marked  to  Senator  Clark  of  New  Hampshire :  — 

"  Can't  you  and  others  start  a  public  sentiment  in 
favor  of  making  no  changes  in  offices  except  for  good 
and  sufficient  cause ?" 

"  It  would  be  an  excellent  measure,"  answered  the 
senator.  "  You  would  remove  or  appoint  no  one  for 
party  considerations  alone  ? " 

"  Exactly.  It  seems  as  though  the  bare  thought  ot 
going  through  again  what  I  did  the  first  year  here, 
would  crush  me." 

"  I  am  not  surprised  to  hear  that  remark,"  continued 
Mr.  Clark.  "Nine-tenths  of  your  callers  are  office- 
seekers,  or  persons  without  any  important  business." 

"  Besides,  it  is  all  wrong  to  remove  public  servants 
who  deserve  to  be  retained,  for  the  sake  of  promoting 
politicians  who  have  done  well  for  their  party."  Then, 
referring  to  applicants  for  office,  he  added,  "  It  seems  as 
if  every  visitor  darted  at  me,  and,  with  thumb  and 
finger,  carried  off  a  portion  of  my  vitality." 

The  senator  laughed  over  this  figure  of  a  "  carcass," 
carried  off  by  birds  of  prey ;  and  the  President  went 
on:  — 

"  I  have  made  up  my  mind  to  make  very  few  changes 
in  the  offices  in  my  gift  for  my  second  term.  I  think 
now  that  I  will  not  remove  a  single  man,  except  for 
delinquency.  To  remove  a  man  is  very  easy,  but  when 
I  go  to  fill  his  place,  there  are  twenty  applicants,  and 
of  these  I  must  make  nineteen  enemies." 


STILL  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  4^7 

Senator  Clark  endorsed  these  sentiments  as  belong- 
ing to  true  statesmanship,  and  hoped  that  the  President 
would  be  able  to  reduce  his  theory  to  practice.  The 
latter  closed  the  interview  with  the  following  rather 
sharp  remark  :  — * 

"  Sitting  here,  where  all  the  avenues  to  public  patron- 
age seem  to  come  together  in  a  knot,  it  does  seem  to 
me  that  our  people  are  fast  approaching  the  point  where 
it  can  be  said  that  seven-eighths  of  them  are  trying  to 
find  how  to  live  at  the  expense  of  the  other  eighth.,, 

Three  weeks  after  Mr.  Lincoln  entered  upon  his 
second  term  of  office,  he  went  to  City  Point,  partly  to 
recruit  his  wasted  energies,  and  partly  to  be  near  the 
base  of  military  operations  now  hastening  to  a  crisis. 
The  "boys  in  blue"  greeted  him  with  an  enthusiasm 
that  showed  their  strong  love  for  the  man. 

A  grand  review  had  been  arranged  for  the  twenty- 
fifth  of  March,  in  honor  of  the  President ;  but  General 
Lee  attacked  and  captured  Fort  Stedman,  on  that 
morning,  requiring  a  hard-fought  battle,  instead  of  a 
review,  to  drive  out  his  forces  —  a  feat  that  was 
triumphantly  accomplished  within  a  few  hours.  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  visited  the  field  of  carnage  soon  after  the 
battle,  and,  on  hearing  regrets  expressed  that  the  grand 
~eview  did  not  occur,  he  said,  — 

"This  victory  is  better  than  any  review." 

Immediately  a  council  of  war  was  held  at  City  Point, 
attended  by  the  President  and  Generals  Grant,  Sher- 
man, Sheridan,  Meade,  and  Ord ;  and  it  was  followed 
by  those  three  memorable  days  of  battle,  Friday,  Satur- 
day, and  Sunday,  sealing  the  doom  of  Richmond. 

Mr.  Lincoln  remained  at  City  Point,  receiving  disr 


428        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

patches  from  the  front  and  forwarding  them  to  Wash 
ington.  His  first  dispatch  to  the  Secretary  of  Wal 
on  Saturday  was,  — 

"  Hard  fighting  this  morning,  and  our  forces  repulsed." 

A  few  hours  later,  he  telegraphed,  — 

"  The  ground  lost  has  been  retaken." 

On  Sunday  morning  his  dispatch  was,  — 

"  The  triumphant  success  of  our  armies,  after  two  days  of  hard 
fighting,  during  which  the  forces  on  both  sides  displayed  unsur- 
passed valor." 

In  the  afternoon  he  telegraphed, — 

"  General  Grant  has  taken  twelve  thousand  prisoners  and  fifty 
pieces  of  artillery." 

On  Monday  morning  he  telegraphed,  — 

'•  Richmond  has  fallen ! " 

Later,  his  dispatch  to  Secretary  Stanton  read, — 

"  I  am  about  to  enter  Richmond  !  " 

The  Secretary  immediately  telegraphed  back,  — 

"  Do  not  peril  your  life  in  that  way  ! " 

The  next  morning  he  returned  the  following :  — 

"  I  received  your  dispatch  yesterday  ;  went  to  Richmond,  and 
feturned  this  morning." 

This  was  not  reckless  daring  on  his  part,  but  his 
philosophical  way  of  viewing  the  danger,  as  we  sha)! 
learn  more  particularly  in  the  next  chapter. 

On  Monday,  President  Lincoln  entered  the  fallen 
city  without  parade.  Usually,  conquerors  have  taken 
possession  of  captured  cities  and  fallen  thrones  with 


STILL  IN  THE   WHITE   HOUSE.  429 

the  proudest  display  of  exultation,  bearing  along  with 
them  the  trophies  of  war.  But  true  to  himself,  Mr. 
Lincoln  found  it  more  congenial  to  his  heart  to  enter 
the  subdued  rebel  capital  without  even  fife  or  drum. 
Unheralded  by  brilliant  cavalcade,  he  threaded  his  way 
as  a  common  man  through  the  streets  to  the  head 
quarters  of  Jefferson  Davis,  who  had  become  a  volur. 
tary  fugitive.  And  though  he  took  possession  of  the 
traitor-city  without  ostentation  or  military  parade 
history  records  his  entrance  as  a  triumphal  march, 
and  patriot  fathers  tell  the  story  of  it  to  their  children 
in  honor  of  Lincoln's  greatness. 

President  Lincoln  remained  in  Richmond  until 
Tuesday  morning,  occupying  the  house  so  uncere 
moniously  vacated  by  the  arch-traitor  of  the  Rebel- 
lion. The  loyal  people  trembled  for  his  safety  when 
they  heard  he  was  there.  Many  pronounced  his  going 
to  Richmond  "a  foolhardy  act.' '  All  deprecated  his 
unnecessary  exposure  of  life,  as  they  regarded  it,  and 
were  greatly  relieved  when  the  telegraph  informed 
them  that  he  was  back  again  in  Washington. 

Speaker  Colfax  expv,  ^ulated  with  him  upon  his 
seeming  disregard  of  danger,  to  which  the  President 
replied  :  — 

"  I  should  have  been  alarmed  myself  if  any  other 
person  had  been  President  and  gone  there ;  but  I  did 
not  feel  in  any  danger  whatever." 

Before  reaching  Washington,  on  his  return,  he 
read  aloud  twice  from  his  copy  of  Shakespeare  the 
words  which  Macbeth  uttered  about  the  murdered 
Duncan,  calling  the  special  attention  of  his  friends  to 
them  :  — 


43°        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Duncan  is  in  his  grave  ; 
After  life's  fitful  fever,  he  sleeps  well ; 
Treason  has  done  his  worst  ;  nor  steel,  nor  poison, 
Malice  domestic,  foreign  levy,  nothing, 
Can  touch  him  further." 

The  friends  who  listened  to  his  remarks  upon  this 
striking  passage  could  but  recall  the  singular  circum 
stances,  after  his  assassination. 

The  fall  of  Richmond  was  celebrated  throughout  the 
North  and  West  by  bonfires,  illuminations,  speeches, 
music,  ringing  of  bells,  and  general  rejoicing.  Every- 
where Mr.  Lincoln  was  remembered  and  eulogized  for 
his  wisdom,  patriotism  and  achievements. 

Just  one  week  from  the  time  the  news  of  the  fall  of 
Richmond  was  flashed  over  the  land,  the  tidings  of 
Lee's  surrender  at  Appomattox  Court-house  followed, 
magnifying  the  general  joy  tenfold,  if  possible.  The 
war  was  ended,  and  Constitutional  Liberty  maintained. 
Over  the  western  portico  of  the  Capitol  at  Washing- 
ton was  inscribed,  with  a  beautiful  banner  waving 
over  it :  — 

"This  is  the  Lord's  doijn^;  it  is  marvellous  in 

OUR   EYES." 

Over  the  door  of  the  State  Department  was  the  fol 
lowing :  — 

"The  Union  saved  by  faith  in  the  Constitu 
tion,  faith  in  the  people,  and  trust  in  god." 

The  day  of  jubilee  had  come  —  "  the  greatest  day," 
said  one,  "since  the  Resurrection." 

The  welcome  news  of  "  Peace  "  spread  over  the  land 
with  the  rapidity  of  light,  and  flashed  under  the  ocean 
to  foreign  countries,  where  glad  millions  joined  in  fes- 


STILL  IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE.  43 1 

tivities  over  the  end  of  the  conflict  and  the  triumph 
of  freedom.  As  when  Cornwallis  surrendered,  and  the 
War  of  Independence  was  over,  the  people  became 
wild  with  joy  ;  so  the  news  —  Lee  has  surrendered 
—  awaked  almost  frantic  demonstrations  of  delight 
All  modes  of  expressing  exultation  were  inadequate, 
and  yet  all  were  employed.  Sextons  rushed  to  the 
churches  to  ring  the  bells ;  gunners  added  the  peal  of 
cannon  ;  acquaintances  met  in  the  streets  and  em- 
braced each  other ;  some  wept,  others  laughed,  all 
were  jubilant.  Never  before  were  so  many  bells  rung 
together,  so  many  cannon  fired,  so  many  shouts  ot 
victory  raised,  so  many  bands  of  music  waked,  so 
many  banners  waved,  and  so  many  bonfires  and  illu- 
minations kindled,  to  celebrate  the  return  of  peace  and 
the  nation  saved. 

The  praise  of  Lincoln  was  on  every  lip,  and  has  con- 
tinued to  be  from  that  day  to  the  present  time.  The 
nation  delights  to  honor  his  memory,  and  one  of  the  re- 
cent acts  of  the  National  Government  is  a  tribute  to  his 
memory  by  a  generous  increase  of  his  widow's  pension. 

Mr.  Lincoln  had  accomplished  the  purpose  of  his 
administration  —  he   had   crushed   the  Rebellion 

AND    SAVED   THE    UNION. 

Charles  Sumner  said  of  President  Lincoln's  adminis- 
tration :  "  The  corner-stone  of  National  Independence 
is  already  in  its  place,  and  on  it  is  inscribed  the  name  of 
George  Washington.  There  is  another  stone  which 
must  have  its  place  at  the  corner  also.  This  is  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  with  all  its  promises  ful 
filled.  On  this  stone  we  will  gratefully  inscribe  the 
name  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 


43 2       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Each  was  at  the  head  of  the  Republic  during  a 
period  of  surpassing  trial ;  and  each  thought  only  of 
the  public  good,  simply,  purely,  constantly,  so  that 
single-hearted  devotion  to  country  will  always  find  a 
synonym  in  their  names.  Each  was  the  national  chie£ 
during  a  time  of  successful  war.  Each  was  the  repre* 
sentative  of  his  country  at  a  great  epoch  of  history. 

"  The  part  which  Lincoln  was  called  upon  to  per- 
form  resembled  in  character  the  part  which  was  per- 
formed by  Washington.  The  work  left  undone  by 
Washington  was  continued  by  Lincoln.  Kindred  m 
service,  kindred  in  patriotism,  each  was  naturally  sur 
rounded  at  death  by  kindred  homage." 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

SHOT   OF   THE   ASSASSIN. 

| ROM  the  time  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  nomination 
for  the  Presidency,  as  we  have  seen,  fears 
of  his  assassination  prevailed  among  his 
friends.  The  President  himself  had  reason 
to  believe  that  he  was  in  danger  of  being  shot,  for  he 
had  a  package  of  threatening  letters,  which  he  had  ap- 
propriately labelled,  "  Assassination  Letters,"  and  laid 
away.  His  attention  was  often  called  to  the  subject 
by  anxious  friends.  On  being  remonstrated  with  for 
unnecessarily  exposing  himself,  he  replied,  without 
denying  his  danger:- — 

"  Soon  after  I  was  nominated  at  Chicago,  I  began 
to  receive  letters  threatening  my  life.  The  first  one 
or  two  made  me  a  little  uncomfortable,  but  I  came  at 
length  to  look  for  a  regular  instalment  of  this  kind  of 
correspondence  in  every  week's  mail,  and  up  to  In- 
auguration Day  I  was  in  constant  receipt  of  such  letters. 
It  is  no  uncommon  thing  to  receive  them  now  ;  but 
they  have  ceased  to  give  me  apprehension." 

Surprise  was  expressed  that  he  could  be  indifferent 
to  a  peril  that  his  friends  considered  imminent,  and  he 
answered : — 


434       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"Oh,  there  is  nothing  like  getting  used  to  things!" 

A  cavalry  guard  was  once  placed  at  the  gates  of 
the  White  House,  but  was  removed  at  his  request. 
"I  worried  until  I  got  rid  of  it,"  he  said  to  a  friend. 

He  once  remarked  to  Colonel  Halpine,  "It  will 
never  do  for  a  President  to  have  guards  with  drawn 
sabres  at  his  door,  as  if  he  fancied  he  were,  or  were 
trying  to  be,  or  were  assuming  to  be,  an  emperor." 

Once  he  went  to  General  Halleck's  private  quarters 
and  protested  against  a  detachment  of  cavalry,  de- 
tailed, without  his  request,  by  General  Wadsworth,  to 
guard  his  carriage  going  to  and  from  the  Soldiers' 
Home.     He  remarked,  facetiously,  yet  earnestly: — 

"  Why,  Mrs.  Lincoln  and  I  cannot  hear  ourselves 
talk  for  the  clatter  of  their  sabres  and  spurs ;  and  some 
of  them  appear  to  be  new  hands  and  very  awkward,  so 
that  I  am  more  afraid  of  being  shot  by  the  accidental 
discharge  of  a  carbine  or  revolver,  than  of  any  attempt 
upon  my  life  by  a  roving  squad  of   Stuart's  cavalry." 

Very  much  in  the  same  vein  he  replied  to  Colonel 
Halpine,  who  was  trying  to  show  him  his  exposure 
even  in  the  White  House,  saying:  — 

"There  are  two  dangers,  the  danger  of  deliberate 
political  assassination,  and  the  mere  brute  violence  of 
Insanity." 

The  President  replied,  as  related  by  Mr.  Carpenter: 

"  Now  as  to  political  assassination,  do  you  think 
the  Richmond  people  would  like  to  have  Hannibal 
Hamlin  here  any  better  than  myself?  In  that  one 
alternative,  I  have  an  insurance  on  my  life  worth  half 
the  prairie  land  of  Illinois.  And  beside,"  —  this  more 
gravely,  —  "  if  there  were  such  a  plot,  and  they  wanted 


SHOT  OF   THE  ASSASSIN.  435 


to  get  at  me,  no  vigilance  could  keep  them  out.  We 
are  so  mixed  up  in  our  affairs,  that  —  no  matter  what 
the  system  established  —  a  conspiracy  to  assassinate, 
if  such  there  were,  could  easily  obtain  a  pass  to  see 
me  for  any  one  or  more  of  its  instruments. 

"To  betray  fear  of  this,  by  placing  guards  or  so 
forth,  would  only  be  to  put  the  idea  into  their  heads, 
and  perhaps,  lead  to  the  very  result  it  was  intended  to 
prevent.  As  to  the  crazy  folks,  Major,  why  I  must 
only  take  my  chances, — the  most  crazy  people  at 
present,  I  fear,  being  some  of  my  own  too  zealous  ad- 
herents. That  there  may  be  such  dangers  as  you  and 
many  others  have  suggested  to  me,  is  quite  possible ; 
but  I  guess  it  would  n't  improve  things  any  to  publish 
that  we  were  afraid  of  them  in  advance." 

At  one  time,  there  was  undoubted  proof  of  a  rebel 
plot  to  abduct  Mr.  Lincoln,  or  kill  him  in  the  attempt, 
as  there  was  at  one  time  to  capture  or  kill  George 
Washington  ;  and  when  the  facts  were  laid  before  him, 
he  replied  : — ■ 

"  Well,  even  if  true,  I  do  not  see  what  the  rebels 
would  gain  by  either  killing  or  getting  possession  of 
me.  I  am  but  a  single  individual,  and  it  would  not 
help  their  cause,  or  make  the  least  difference  in  the 
progress  of  the  wft." 

On  the  morning  of  April  14,  1865,  the  President's 
son,  Capt.  Robert  T.  Lincoln,  returned  from  the  army, 
and  spent  an  hour  in  giving  his  father  a  detailed  ac- 
count of  Lee's  surrender.  At  the  same  time,  also,  he 
received  a  letter  from  General  Owen  Allen,  of  New 
York,  entreating  him  not  to  expose  his  life  again,  as 
he  did  by  going  to  Richmond,  to  which  he  replied:-— 


436        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

"I  intend  to  adopt  the  advice  of  my  friends,  and  use 
due  precaution." 

The  14th  of  April  was  a  holiday  for  the  loyal  people  ; 
for  it  was  the  anniversary  of  the  evacuation  of  Fort 
Sumter,  just  four  years  before  ;  and  the  day  had  been 
set  apart  for  the  restoration  of  the  old  flag  to  its  former 
place  over  the  fore.  The  ceremony,  with  speeches, 
music,  cannon,  and  ocher  demonstrations  of  joy,  at 
Charleston,  S.  C,  was  witnessed  by  a  great  concourse 
of  loyal  men  from  every  part  of  the  land. 

A  special  programme  for  the  evening  of  that  day  was 
announced  at  Ford's  Theatre,  and  President  Lincoln, 
General  Grant,  and  other  public  men  in  the  city  were 
invited;  and  it  was  announced  in  the  public  journals 
that  these  dignitaries  would  be  present. 

Mr.  Ashmun  and  Mr.  Colfax  were  with  him  when  his 
carriage  was  driven  to  the  gate.  The  latter  gentleman 
was  to  leave  in  the  morning  for  California.  Mr.  Ash- 
mun had  important  business  to  lay  before  the  Presi- 
dent ;  and,  before  entering  his  carriage,  the  latter  wrote 
upon  a  card  :  — 

"  Allow  Mr.  Ashmun  and  friend  to  come  in  at  nine  A.  m.  to- 
morrow. 

"A.  Lincoln." 

These  were  the  last  words  he  wrote.  Passing  out 
to  his  carriage,  he  said  to  Mr.  Colfax :  — 

"  Do  not  forget  to  tell  the  people  of  the  mining 
regions  what  I  told  you  this  morning  about  the  de- 
velopment when  peace  comes." 

After  being  seated  in  his  carriage,  and  the  horse? 
started,  he  added,  "  I  will  telegraph  you,  Colfax,  at 
San  Francisco.,, 


SHOT  OF  THE  ASSASSIN.  43 J 


It  was  twenty  minutes  to  nine  o'clock  when  he 
entered  the  theatre,  accompanied  by  Mrs.  Lincoln, 
Miss  Harris  and  Major  Rathbone.  General  Grant  had 
been  called  to  Philadelphia. 

The  vast  audience  rose  to  their  feet,  and  made  such 
a  demonstration  m  honor  of  their  chief,  as  was  possible 
only  by  those  who  appreciated  the  end  of  the  war  and 
the  reign  of  peace. 

An  hour  afterwards,  the  crack  of  a  pistol  startled  the 
audience,  although,  at  first,  many  thought  it  was  a  part 
of  the  entertainment.  A  shriek  from  Mrs.  Lincoln, 
and  the  leap  of  the  assassin  from  the  President's  private 
box  to  the  stage,  however,  assured  them  that  a  real 
tragedy  had  been  enacted.  The  murderer  exclaimed, 
as  he  leaped  to  the  stage :  — 

"Sic  semper  tyrannis!"  [Thus  let  it  ever  be  with 
tyrants.]  Then  brandishing  a  gleaming  dagger  he 
added,  "The  South  is  avenged,"  and  escaped. 

For  a  moment  the  audience  was  paralyzed,  scarcely 
realizing  the  tragic  situation. 

"John  Wilkes  Booth!"  shouted  a  man  in  the 
audience. 

"Shoot  him!"  "Shoot  him!"  "Hang  him!" 
screamed  a  hundred  men,  awaking  to  the  fact  that  it 
was  the  shot  of  an  assassin  which  startled  them. 

Women  screamed  and  fainted ;  men  gesticulated 
and  threatened ;  everybody  was  filled  with  consterna 
tion  and  dismay ;  hundreds  wept  in  fright  and  horror. 
The  scene  beggared  description.  From  the  highest 
peak  of  joy,  the  audience  was  plunged  in  a  moment 
down  to  unutterable  sorrow.  To  add  to  the  terrible 
fear  and  apprehension  the  tidings  were  brought,  as  the 


438       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

excited  assembly  were  issuing  from  the  building,  that 
Secretary  Seward  and  Vice-President  Johnson  were 
assassinated,  also.  At  once,  hundreds  caught  up  the 
idea,  that  the  oft-repeated  rebel  threats  to  assassinate 
the  members  of  the  Cabinet  and  take  forcible  possession 
of  the  Government,  were  being  executed.  All  sorts  of 
rumors  of  violence  and  blood  spread  through  the 
city,  creating  the  apprehension  that  republican  insti- 
tutions were  dissolving  into  anarchy,  and  that  horrid 
butchery  would  destroy  what  treason  had  failed  to 
overthrow. 

The  reports  proved  to  be  true,  as  far  as  Secretary 
Seward  was  concerned.  One  of  the  conspirators, 
Lewis  Payne,  an  infamous  character,  had  entered  the 
secretary's  chamber  and  stabbed  him  three  times  in 
bed.  Mr.  Seward  was  helpless  at  the  time,  from  the 
effects  of  <*  serious  injury  ;  and,  but  for  the  courage  and 
great  strength  of  his  attendant,  the  assassin  would 
have  killed  him  on  the  spot.  Mr.  Seward's  son  was 
present,  and  was  badly  wounded,  with  four  others,  by 
the  villain,  before  he  escaped  from  the  house. 

The  unconscious  form  of  the  President  was  borne 
across  the  street  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Peterson,  where 
the  best  medical  and  surgical  talent  of  the  city  came 
lo  his  relief.  It  was  soon  manifest  that  the  good  and 
great  man  was  beyond  the  skill  of  physicians.  He  was 
shot  through  the  back  of  the  head,  the  ball  entering 
on  th^  left  side  behind  the  ear,  passing  through  the 
brain,  and  lodging  just  behind  the  right  eye. 

By  midnight  all  the  members  of  the  Cabinet  stood 
around  the  couch  of  the  dying  President,  together  with 
Mrs.  Dixon,  for  whom  Mrs.  Lincoln  had  sent,  Miss 


SIIGT  OF   THE  ASSASSIN.  4J9 

Harris,  Major  Rathbone,  Captain  Robert  Lincoln,  and 
his  almost  distracted  mother,  with  other  friends.  At 
the  announcement  of  Surgeon-General  Barnes,  that 
there  was  "not  a  ray  of  hope,"  Secretary  Stanton  burst 
into  tears,  saying,  — 

"  Oh,  no  !     General,  no,  no  !  " 

Senator  Sumner  stood  holding  one  of  the  President's 
hands,  sobbing  as  if  parting  with  his  father.  Mrs. 
Lincoln  walked  to  and  fro  from  room  to  room,  wringing 
her  hands  in  despair,  exclaiming, — 

"  How  can  it  be  so  ?  Why  did  he  not  shoot  me 
instead  of  my  husband  ?  " 

Again  and  again  she  would  leave  the  room,  but  soon 
return,  wringing  her  hands  in  agony,  reiterating,  — 

"  Why  is  it  so  ?     I  must  go  with  him  !  " 

Captain  Robert  Lincoln  bore  himself  with  great 
firmness,  comforting  his  mother  in  the  most  affection- 
ate  manner,  and  entreating  her  to  look  to  God  for 
support.  Occasionally,  unable  to  control  his  feelings, 
he  retired  to  the  hall,  and  gave  vent  to  his  deep  sorrow 
for  a  moment,  and  then  returned  with  renewed  strength, 
to  assuage  the  grief  of  his  mother, 

Such  a  night  of  woe  and  anguish  was  never  known 
before  in  Washington.  The  weary  hours  dragged 
heavily  because  of  their  weight  of  sorrow.  The  mur- 
dered one  lay  unconscious  of  his  sufferings  and  the 
grief  of  friends  around  his  bed,  through  all  the  dis* 
mal  night.  Before  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
Secretary  Stanton  sent  the  following  telegram  over 
the  land :  — 

"Abraham  Lincoln  died  this  morning  at  twenty-two 
minutes  after  seven  o'clock." 


44-0       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

But  we  must  return  to  the  assassin.  He  was 
known  to  some  persons  who  saw  him  and  heard 
his  voice,  after  the  fatal  shot  —  John  Wilkes  Booth 
—  a  worthless,  dissipated  fellow,  in  full  sympathy  with 
the  rebel  cause.  Immediate  efforts  were  put  forth 
by  the  authorities  to  capture  him  and  his  fellow-con- 
spirators. It  was  soon  ascertained  that  Booth  had 
been  busy  laying  his  plans  during  the  previous  day, 
and  that  several  accomplices  were  engaged  with  him. 
There  was  unmistakable  evidence  that  other  members 
of  the  Cabinet  were  singled  out  for  assassination,  and 
that  General  Grant  would  have  been  a  victim  had  he 
remained  in  the  city.  A  letter  was  found  in  Booth's 
trunk  which  showed  that  the  assassination  was  planned 
for  March  4  —  the  day  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  inaugura- 
tion, and  that  it  failed  because  the  accomplices  refused 
to  proceed  "  until  Richmond  could  be  hea7'dfrom" 

Colonel  Baker,  with  his  picked  men,  pursued  Booth 
to  the  farm-house  of  one  Garrett,  in  Lower  Maryland, 
in  whose  barn  he  was  found,  with  Herold,  one  of  his 
accomplices.  Herold  gave  himself  up,  but  Booth  re- 
fused to  surrender,  whereupon  the  barn  was  set  on 
fire,  and  he  was  shot  by  Boston  Corbett,  in  his  at- 
tempt to  escape.  Lewis  Payne,  who  made  the  attempt 
upon  the  life  of  Secretary  Seward,  George  A.  Atzerodt, 
to  whom  was  assigned  the  murder  of  Vice-President 
Johnson,  Michael  O'Laughlin,  Edward  Spangler,  whc 
aided  Booth  at  the  theatre,  Samuel  Arnold,  Mary  E„ 
Surratt,  and  Dr.  Samuel  A.  Mudd,  were  the  conspirators 
arrested  and  tried  by  a  military  commission.  Herold, 
Atzerodt,  Payne,  and  Mrs.  Surratt  were  sentenced  to  be 
hanged,  and  were  executed  on  the  seventh  day  of  July. 


SHOT  OF  TXE  ASSASSIN.  44 1 


We  stop  here  to  record  a  fact  about  the  assassin 
that  has  never  been  published.  A  retired  sea-captain 
of  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  remarked,  when  he  read  that 
J.  Wilkes  Booth  had  murdered  Fresident  Lincoln  : 

"I  am  not  at  all  surprised;  just  what  I  should 
expect !  " 

"Why  do  you  say  that?  "  inquired  a  listener. 

"I  will  tell  you,"  replied  the  captain;  "when  J. 
Wilkes  Booth  was  about  ten  years  old,  I  was  running 
a  vessel  from  Liverpool  to  New  Orleans,  and  I  brought 
J.  Wilkes,  with  his  father  and  family,  from  the  former 
to  the  latter  place.  That  boy,  John  Wilkes,  was  the 
most  ungovernable  and  impudent  fellow  of  his  age  I 
ever  met  with.  Like  most  boys  who  go  to  ruin,  he 
was  disrespectful  and  saucy  to  his  mother.  She  could 
do  nothing  with  him.  One  day  she  was  correcting 
him  for  his  usual  impudence  to  her,  when  Mr.  Booth, 
her  husband,  made  his  appearance.  Observing  what 
his  wife  was  about,  he  cried  out  at  the  top  of  his  voice, 
'  What !  treating  that  boy  so?  He  never  will  make  a 
man  if  you  treat  him  so/  "  The  captain  added :  "  I 
am  not  surprised  that  such  a  boy  should  become  an 
assassin." 

Before  his  assassination,  President  Lincoln  was 
often  likened  to  William  of  Orange,  whose  subjects 
called  him  "  Father  William,"  as  we  were  wont  to  call 
our  beloved  President  "  Father  Abraham."  But  when 
treason  had  done  its  worst,  and  our  Lincoln  was 
assassinated,  as  William  of  Orange  was  assassinated, 
the  comparison  with  that  "  purest  and  best-loved  ruler 
of  his  times"  became  a  remarkable  and  affecting 
coincidence. 


442       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

By  midnight,  April  14,  the  tidings  of  President  Lin* 
coin's  assassination  began  to  flash  over  the  wires. 
Long  before  sunrise  the  large  cities  and  towns  of  the 
country,  having  night  telegraphic  connection  with 
Washington,  were  startled  by  the  terrible  news.  Gov- 
ernors, mayors  and  other  officials,  were  called  from 
their  beds  to  receive  the  dreadful  announcement.  By 
the  time  men  and  women  went  to  the  business  of  the 
morning  the  sad  news  met  them  everywhere ;  and 
speedily  followed  Mr.  Stanton's  telegram  announcing 
the  President's  death. 

Never  was  there  such  sorrow  in  the  Republic 
before.  The  people  had  been  rejoicing  over  the  close 
of  the  war  for  several  days,  and  the  praise  of  President 
Lincoln,  for  his  wise  and  successful  administration, 
was  on  every  lip.  The  heights  of  national  joy  had 
been  reached  ;  and  now  to  plunge  therefrom  into  the 
lowest  depths  of  sorrow,  was  a  fearful  change.  The 
popular  heart  sunk  under  the  burden  of  grief.  Strong 
men  wept  as  they  went  about  the  streets.  Great  men 
buried  their  faces  in  their  hands  and  cried  as  if  a  mem- 
ber of  their  own  families  had  been  stricken  down. 
The  marts  of  trade  were  turned  to  houses  of  mourning. 
The  transaction  of  business  ceased.  Neither  rich  nor 
poor  had  any  heart  to  traffic  or  labor.  Neighbor  ac- 
costed neighbor  —  "  terrible  !  terrible !  "  and  burst  into 
tears.  The  sorrow  was  universal.  Both  old  and 
young  felt  its  oppressive  weight. 

A  few  weary,  sad  hours  passed,  and  people  began  to 
gather  in  halls  and  churches  to  carry  their  case  to  the 
Lord.  There  was  no  help  in  man  for  such  a  trial. 
When  stalwart  men  bear  about  so  great  a  sorrow,  that 


SHOT  OF  THE  ASSASSIN.  443 

they  meet  only  to  speak  jn  tears,  the  only  relief  is 
found  at  the  throne  of  grace.  And  so  men  left  their 
business  and  women  their  homes  to  gather  round  a 
common  altar  ;  rich  and  poor,  learned  and  unlearned 
meeting  together  before  the  Most  High.  There  were 
hundreds  and  thousands  of  such  assemblies  on  the 
afternoon  of  that  sorrowful  Saturday,  April  15,  1865, 
Words  of  comfort,  prayers,  and  tears,  brought  some 
relief  to  the  mourning  people. 

The  next  day  was  the  holy  Sabbath ;  and  such  a 
Sabbath  !  Already  the  symbols  of  grief  had  appeared 
on  churches  and  public  buildings,  stores  and  dwelling 
houses.  As  if  by  a  general  impulse,  the  people  every- 
where began  on  Saturday  to  drape  their  homes  and 
places  of  business  with  the  habiliments  of  sorruw. 
The  markets  were  exhausted  of  every  fabric  that  could 
be  used  to  express  the  sadness  of  human  hearts. 
Houses  of  worship  were  crowded  on  Sunday  with 
honest  mourners.  In  pulpits  heavily  draped  with 
crape,  preachers  discoursed  upon  the  great  sorrow, 
and  led  their  sorrowful  congregations  to  the  Lord. 
The  day  will  never  be  forgotten  by  the  multitude  who 
mingled  their  common  grief. 

In  some  localities  the  grief  expressed  itself  in  the 
form  of  vengeance.  It  assumed  that  form  early  or 
Saturday  morning  in  the  city  of  New  York.  Armed 
men  gathered  in  the  streets  threatening  speedy  death 
to  disloyal  citizens.  Their  numbers  rapidly  increased, 
until  fifty  thousand  assembled  in  Wall  street  Exchange, 
bearing  aloft  a  portable  gallows,  and  swearing  sum- 
mary vengeance  upon  the  first  rebel  sympathizer  who 
dared   to  speak     One   thoughtless   fellow   remarked 


444       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

that  "  Lincoln  ought  to  have  been  shot  long  ago"; 
and  he  was  struck  dead  instantly.  The  grieved  and 
vengeful  crowd  seethed  towards  the  office  of  the 
World,  a  disloyal  paper,  with  mutterings  of  violence 
on  their  lips.  It  seemed  scarcely  possible  to  preven': 
violent  demonstration.  A  bloody  scene  appeared  to  be 
imminent.  At  that  critical  moment  a  portly  man,  of 
commanding  physique  and  voice,  appeared  upon  the 
balcony  of  the  City  Hall,  from  which  telegrams  were 
read  to  the  people,  and  raising  his  right  hand  to  in- 
voke silence,  he  exclaimed,  in  clear  and  sonorous 
tones  :  — 

"  Fellow-citizens  :  Clouds  and  darkness  are  round 
about  Him  !  His  pavilion  is  dark  waters  and  thick 
clouds  of  the  skies !  Justice  and  judgment  are  the 
habitation  of  His  throne !  Mercy  and  truth  shall  go 
before  his  face !  Fellow-citizens  :  God  reigns,  and  the 
government  at  Washington  still  lives  ! " 

The  effect  of  this  serious  address  was  magical.  The 
raging  populace  subsided  into  repose.  A  hushed 
silence  pervaded  the  vast  assembly,  when  the  voice  of 
the  speaker  ceased,  as  if  they  had  listened  to  a  mes- 
senger from  the  skies.  The  change  was  marvellous. 
The  speaker  was  General  James  A.  Garfield,  who 
became  President  sixteen  years  afterwards,  and  was 
shot  by  an  assassin  four  months  later  !  How  strange 
that  the  inhabitants  of  that  metropolis,  who  listened 
to  the  gifted  statesman  so  gladly,  April  14th,  1865, 
should  be  shocked  by  the  news  of  his  assassination  on 
July  2d,  1 88 1  ! 

No  class  of  citizens  were  more  sincere  mourners  for 
the  illustrious  dead  than  the  colored  race.     They  went 


SHOT  OF  THE  ASSASSIN.  445 

about  the  streets  of  Washington  wringing  their  hands 
and  weeping  as  Rachel  did  for  her  children.  They 
gathered  in  groups  on  the  streets  and  bewailed  their 
loss  in  pitiful  lamentations.  Many  of  them  appeared 
to  be  inconsolable.  More  sincere  and  profound  sor- 
row never  bowed  human  hearts. 

A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Tribune,  writing 
from  Charleston,  S.  C,  said  :  — 

"  I  never  saw  such  sad  faces  or  heard  such  heavy 
heart-beatings  as  here  in  Charleston  the  day  the 
dreadful  news  came !  The  colored  people  —  the  na- 
tive loyalists  —  were  like  children  bereaved  of  an  old 
and  loved  parent.  I  saw  one  old  woman  going  up  the 
street  wringing  her  hands  and  saying  aloud  as  she 
walked,  looking  straight  before  her,  so  absorbed  in  her 
grief  that  she  noticed  no  one  :  '  O  Lord  !  O  Lord  !  O 
Lord  !    Massa  Sam's  dead  !  Massa  Sam's  dead  ! ' 

"  '  Who's  dead,  Aunty  ? '  I  asked  her. 

" '  Massa  Sam,'  she  said,  not  looking  at  me,  renew- 
ing her  lamentations. 

"  '  O  Lord !  O  Lord  !  O  Lord  !  Massa  Sam's  dead  ! ' 

"  '  Who  is  Massa  Sam  ? '  I  asked  again. 

"  '  Uncle  Sam,'  she  said. 

"'O  Lord!  Lord!  Lord!"  she  continued. 

"  I  was  not  quite  sure  that  she  meant  the  President, 
and  I  spoke  again  :  — 

'" Who's  Massa  Sam,  Aunty?' 

"  i  Mr.  Lincum  ! '  she  said,  and  resumed  wringing  her 
hands  and  moaning  in  utter  hopelessness  of  sorrow. 
The  poor  creature  was  too  ignorant  to  comprehend  any 
difference  between  the  very  unreal  Uncle  Sam  and  the 
actual  President ;  but  her  heart  told  her  that  he  whom 


445       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

Heaven  had  sent  in  answer  to  her  prayers  was  lying  in 
a  bloody  grave,  and  she  and  her  race  were  left — father- 
less." 

A  friend  of  the  writer  was  in  a  city  of  North  Carolina 
when  the  news  of  the  assassination  reached  the  colored 
people  there.  In  their  profound  grief  they  followed 
their  leader  to  their  humble  place  of  worship,  filling  it 
to  overflowing.  Our  friend  went  thither,  and  found 
the  whole  congregation  upon  their  knees,  giving  vent 
to  their  feelings  in  convulsive  sobs  and  piteous  moans. 
Even  their  patriarchal  leader  was  too  full  for  utterance  ; 
and,  on  his  knees,  he  was  crying  with  his  afflicted  peo- 
ple. At  length,  an  old  woman,  bowed  with  age  and 
trembling  with  emotion,  rose  to  express  her  grief  in 
words.  Clasping  her  dusky  hands  together,  and  lifting 
her  streaming  eyes  heavenward,  she  exclaimed:  — 

"  Bress  de  Lord !  bress  de  Lord !  Dey  hab  killed 
Massa  Linkum,  but  dey  can't  kill  God!" 

"Amen!"  "Amen!"  "Amen!"  was  the  response 
from  every  part  of  the  house,  showing,  not  only  the 
greatness  of  their  bereavement,  but,  also,  their  glad- 
ness that  God  was  left.  From  that  moment  their 
tongues  were  loosed,  and  they  found  relief  in  the  in= 
spiring  thought,  "they  can't  kill  God." 

The  Atlantic  Cable  flashed  the  terrible  news  across 
the  sea,  "President  Lincoln  Assassinated,"  start- 
ling foreign  governments,  and  eliciting  expressions  of 
profound  sympathy. 

Queen  Victoria  instructed  Earl  Russell  to  convey 
her  unfeigned  sorrow  to  the  government  of  the  United 
States,  and,  at  the  same  time,  with  her  own  hand*, 
she  addressed  a  letter  of  touching  condolence  to  Mrs. 
Lincoln. 


SHOT  OF   THE  ASSASSIN.  44? 

The  London  "  Spectator"  declared  that  all  England 
wept  for  "the  noblest  President  whom  America  has 
had  since  the  time  of  Washington  ;  certainly  the  best 
if  not  the  ablest,  man  ruling  over  any  country  in  the 
civilized  world." 

The  Empress  Eugenie,  wife  of  Napoleon,  the  Em 
peror  of  France,  addressed  a  letter  of  true  sympathy  to 
Mrs.  Lincoln ;  and  the  French  government  seconded 
the  address  of  the  Emperor  to  the  United  States,  ex- 
pressing the  deepest  sorrow  over  our  national  bereave 
ment. 

The  governments  of  Russia,  Italy,  Prussia,  Belgium, 
Turkey,  Austria  and  Switzerland,  were  equally  demon- 
strative in  their  expressions  of  grief  and  condolence. 

Hon.  George  Bancroft,  the  historian,  said,  "  The 
echoes  of  his  funeral  knell  vibrate  through  the  world, 
and  the  friends  of  freedom  of  every  tongue  and  in  every 
clime  are  the  mourners." 

Speaker  Colfax  said,  — 

"Of  this  noble-hearted  man,  so  full  of  genial  impulses,  so  self- 
forgetful,  so  utterly  unselfish,  so  pure  and  gentle  and  good,  who 
lived  for  us  and  at  last  died  for  us,  I  feel  how  inadequate  I  am  to 
portray  his  manifold  excellence  —  his  intellectual  worth  —  his 
generous  character  —  his  fervid  patriotism.  Pope  celebrated  the 
memory  of  Robert  Hariey,  the  Lord  of  Oxford,  a  privy  counsellor 
of  Queen  Anne,  who  himself  narrowly  escaped  assassination,  in 
lines  that  seem  prophetic  of  Mr.  Lincoln^,  virtues  :  — 

'  A  soul  supreme  in  each  hard  instance  tried ; 
Above  all  pain,  all  anger,  and  all  pride, 
The  rage  of  power,  the  blast  of  public  breathy 
The  lust  of  lucre,  and  the  dread  of  death.5 


448       PIONEER  HOME    TO    WHITE  HOUSE. 

"  Murdered,  coffined,  buried,  he  will  live  with  those  few  im- 
mortal names  who  were  not  born  to  die  ;  live  as  the  Father  of  the 
Faithful  in  the  time  that  tried  men's  souls ;  live  in  the  grateful 
hearts  of  the  dark-browed  race  he  lifted  from  under  the  heel  of  the 
oppressor  to  the  dignity  of  freedom  and  manhood ;  live  in  every 
bereaved  circle  which  has  given  father,  husband,  son,  or  friend  to 
die,  as  he  did,  for  his  country ;  live  with  the  glorious  company  of 
martyrs  to  liberty,  justice,  and  humanity,  that  trio  of  Heaven-born 
principles  ;  live  in  the  love  of  all  beneath  the  circuit  of  the  sun, 
vvho  loathe  tyranny,  slavery,  and  wrong.  And,  leaving  behind  him 
\  record  that  shows  how  honesty  and  principle  lifted  him,  self- 
made  as  he  was,  from  the  humblest  ranks  of  the  people  to  the 
noblest  station  on  the  globe,  and  a  name  that  shall  brighten  uidefl 
tiie  eye  of  posterity  as  the  ages  roll  by  — 

'From  the  top  of  Fame's  ladder  he  stepped  to  the  sky,  ° 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

FUNERAL   CEREMONIES. 

IMMEDIATE  preparations  were   made   foi 
the  obsequies.    The  dead  body  of  the  Presi- 
dent  was    removed   to   the  White   House, 
where   it   was  embalmed   and  placed  in  a 
costly  casket  resting  upon  an  elaborate  catafalque. 

On  Monday,  a  meeting  of  Congressmen,  with  other 
notable  persons  in  Washington,  was  held  in  the 
Capitol,  when  Charles  Sumner  of  Massachusetts 
was  appointed  Chairman  of  a  Committee  to  arrange 
for  the  funeral  ceremonies.  At  four  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  this  Committee  reported  Wednesday  for 
the  time  of  the  funeral,  and  the  names  of  six  Sen- 
ators and  six  Representatives  for  pall-bearers,  and 
one  gentleman  from  each  State  and  Territory  as  a 
National  Committee  to  attend  the  remains  to  Spring- 
field, Illinois. 

On  Tuesday  morning  the  White  House  was  thrown 
open  to  the  tens  of  thousands  anxious  to  behold  once 
more  the  face  of  their  beloved  ruler.  All  day,  until 
far  into  the  evening,  a  steady  stream  of  visitors,  of  all 
ages  and  classes,  passed  into  the  presence  of  the  dead. 
Thousands  were  unable  to  gain  admittance  to  the  Ex- 


450       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

ecutive  Mansion  during  the  day,  on  account  of  the 
multitude,  and  they  turned  away  in  disappointment. 

When  the  hour  of  the  funeral  arrived  on  Wednesday, 
the  city,  with  all  its  public  buildings,  was  elaborately 
draped  in  black.  The  symbols  of  mourning  were  of 
the  most  varied  and  expensive  character.  Decorative 
art  was  taxed  to  its  utmost  to  express  the  sentiment 
of  grief  that  pervaded  the  city.  A  public  man,  looking 
at  the  sable  drapery,  remarked  :  — 

"  As  it  should  be.  The  nation  would  have  it  so.  It 
tells  the  real  sorrow  of  the  people.,, 

The  funeral  services  were  conducted  in  the  East 
Room,  where  the  family  and  relatives  of  the  President, 
with  many  distinguished  men,  were  seated.  Mrs. 
Lincoln  was  too  much  prostrated  to  attend  the  funeral 
service.  Many  governors,  senators,  judges,  repre- 
sentatives, and  other  men  of  note,  were  present  from 
different  parts  of  the  Union.  Governors  Fenton  of 
New  York,  Andrew  of  Massachusetts,  Brough  of  Ohio, 
Parker  of  New  Jersey,  Oglesby  of  Illinois,  and  Buck 
ingham  of  Connecticut,  were  there.  The  ceremonies 
were  simple  and  touching,  very  appropriate  for  the 
truly  Republican  statesman  for  whom  the  nation 
mourned.  Rev.  Dr.  Gurley  paid  a  just  and  eloquent 
tribute  to  the  dead.     He  said  :  — 

"  Probably  no  man  since  the  days  of  Washington  was  ever  so 
deeply  and  firmly  embedded  and  enshrined  in  the  hearts  of  the 
people  as  Abraham  Lincoln.  Nor  was  it  a  mistaken  confidence 
and  love.  He  deserved  it ;  deserved  it  well  ;  deserved  it  all.  He 
merited  it  by  his  character,  by  his  acts,  and  by  the  tenor  and 
tone  and  spirit  of  his  life.  .  .  He  rose  to  the  dignity  and 
momentousness  of  the  occasion  ;  saw  his  duty  as  the  magistrate 
of  a  great  and  imperilled  people,  and  he  determined  to  do  his 


FUNERAL   CEREMONIES.  451 

duty  and  his  whole  duty,  seeking  the  guidance  and  leaning  upon 
the  arm  of  Him  of  whom  it  is  written  — '  He  giveth  power  to  the 
faint,  and  to  them  that  have  no  might  he  increaseth  strength, 
.  .  .  Never  shall  I  forget  the  emphasis  and  the  deep  emotion 
with  which  he  said,  in  this  very  room,  to  a  company  of  clergymen 
and  others,  who  called  to  pay  him  their  respects  in  the  darkest 
days  of  our  civil  conflict :  i  Gentlemen,  my  hope  of  success  w 
the  great  and  terrible  struggle  rests  on  that  immovable  foundation, 
the  justice  and  goodness  of  God.  And  when  events  are  verv 
threatening,  and  prospects  very  dark,  I  still  hope  that,  in  some 
way  which  man  cannot  see,  all  will  be  well  in  the  end,  because 
our  cause  is  just,  and  God  is  on  our  side.'  Such  was  his  sublime 
and  holy  faith  ;  and  it  was  an  anchor  to  his  soul  both  sure  and 
steadfast.  It  made  him  firm  and  strong  It  emboldened  him 
in  the  pathway  of  duty,  however  rugged  and  perilous  it  might  be 
It  made  him  valiant  for  the  right,  for  the  cause  of  God  and  hu- 
manity, and  it  held  him  steady  and  unswerving  to  a  policy  of 
administration  which  he  thought,  and  which  all  now  think,  both 
God  and  man  required  him  to  adopt." 

At  the  close  of  the  services  in  the  presidential  man- 
sion, the  body  was  conveyed  to  the  Capitol,  followed  by 
a  larger  and  more  imposing  procession  than  had  ever 
been  seen  in  Washington.  The  grand  avenue  leading 
from  the  White  House  to  the  Capitol  was  one  dense 
mass  of  human  beings,  and  all  the  neighboring  streets 
of  the  city  were  thronged  with  tearful  spectators.  As 
the  hearse,  which  was  drawn  by  eight  gray  horses, 
heavily  draped  in  black,  approached  the  Capitol  grounds, 
several  bands  joined  in  a  mournful  requiem,  answerea 
by  minute  guns  from  the  fortifications.  The  casket 
was  deposited  in  the  rotunda,  resting  upon  a  grand 
catafalque,  when  Dr.  Gurley  conducted  further  cere- 
monies suited  to  the  place  and  the  occasion.  Then 
the  doors  were  thrown  open,  that  the  remains  might  be 


45 2        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

viewed  by  the  tens  of  thousands  who  had  failed  to  gain 
access  to  the  Executive  Mansion.  From  that  time,  all 
through  the  night,  and  far  into  the  next  day,  a  tide  of 
people  flowed  in  and  out  of  the  rotunda,  to  view  the 
face  of  the  President  whom  they  had  honored  and 
loved.  Of  the  pageant  of  that  day,  Dr.  Holland  says : 
"  In  many  of  its  aspects,  it  was  never  paralleled  upon 
this  continent.  Nothing  like  it  —  nothing  approaching 
it  — had  ever  occurred  in  this  country,  if,  indeed,  in  the 
world.,, 

The  same  day  was  set  apart,  throughout  the  land,  for 
funeral  ceremonies,  in  honor  of  the  deceased  President. 
In  hundreds  and  thousands  of  towns  and  cities,  churches 
and  public  halls  were  thrown  open,  and  the  clergy  and 
other  professional  gentlemen  as  well  as  laymen,  ad- 
dressed the  assembled  multitudes,  and  led  them  to  the 
throne  of  grace. 

The  funeral  train  left  Washington  on  the  morning 
of  April  21.  Along  with  the  casket  of  the  President, 
was  borne  that  of  Willie — father  and  son  united  in 
death  in  the  journey  homeward,  as  they  were  united  in 
life,  four  years  before,  on  their  journey  thitherward. 
The  train  was  .elaborately  draped,  from  the  locomotive 
to  the  last  car. 

At  Baltimore,  where  conspirators  sought  the  Presi- 
dent's life,  four  years  before,  on  his  journey  to  Wash- 
ington, thus  obliging  him  to  pass  through  the  city  by 
night,  a  vast  concourse  of  people  assembled  to  pay 
their  tribute  of  respect  to  the  dead.  The  city  was 
almost  as  profusely  draped  as  Washington  itself ;  and 
when  the  casket  was  opened  to  the  public,  for  a  brief 
time,  as   honest   tears  were   shed   by  the  multitude 


FUNERAL   CEREMONIES.  453 

about  his  remains  as  were  wept  in  any  other  part  of 
the  land. 

The  inhabitants  of  every  village  through  which  the 
funeral  train  passed,  gathered  at  the  depots,  and,  with 
uncovered  heads,  watched  it  as  it  swept  by,  while  the 
tolling  of  bells,  and  sometimes  the  solemn  dirge  by  a 
band,  together  with  sable  draperies  on  buildings  and 
flags,  added  pathos  to  their  grief. 

At  York,  six  ladies  entered  the  funeral  car,  bearing 
an  immense  floral  tribute,  which  they  laid  upon  the 
coffin  so  tenderly,  and  with  so  much  emotion,  that  all 
witnesses  were  moved  to  tears. 

The  funeral  cortege  reached  Philadelphia  on  Saturday 
evening,  and  the  remains  were  conveyed  to  Independ- 
ence Hall,  followed  by  a  procession  of  one  hundred 
thousand  people,  while  from  three  to  four  hundred 
thousand  more  were  spectators.  In  the  solemn  shadows 
of  night,  moving  to  the  measure  of  funereal  music,  the 
departed  President  was  laid  in  the  historic  hall,  which 
was  one  mass  of  flags,  drapery,  and  flowers.  Few  failed 
to  recall  the  prophetic  words  of  the  dead  man,  uttered 
within  that  hall  four  years  before, when  he  was  on  his  way 
to  Washington  to  assume  the  duties  of  President :  — 

"All  the  political  sentiments  I  entertain  have  been  drawn,  so 
far  as  I  have  been  able  to  draw  them,  from  the  sentiments  which 
originated,  and  were  given  to  the  world  from  this  hall.  I  have 
never  had  a  feeling  politically  that  did  not  spring  from  the  senti- 
ments embodied  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence."  .  .  . 
"  Now,  my  friends,  c^~  ;his  country  be  saved  on  this  basis  ?  If  it 
can,  I  shall  consider  myself  one  of  the  happiest  men  in  the  world 
!f  I  can  help  to  save  it.  If  it  cannot  be  saved  upon  that  principle, 
it  will  be  truly  awful.  But  if  this  country  cannot  be  saved  without 
giving  up  that  principle,  I  was  about  to  say  /  would  rather  be 
assassinated  on  the  stiot" 


454       PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUSE, 

After  the  addition  of  a  few  more  words,  he  added : 

"  I  have  said  nothing  but  what  I  am  willing  to  live  bj 
and,  if  it  be  the  pleasure  of  Almighty  God,  to  die  by" 

How  wonderful  his  words  in  view  of  the  appalling 
fact,  that  the  enemies  of  the  Declaration  of  Independ 
ence  finally  took  his  life ! 

From  Saturday  night  until  Monday  morning,  the 
face  of  the  murdered  President  was  viewed  by  three 
hundred  thousand  people  —  an  eager,  orderly,  mourning 
procession,  moving  in  and  out  of  Independence  Hall, 
night  and  day,  to  pay  their  sincere  tribute  of  respect  to 
the  dead. 

In  the  city  of  New  York  more  than  one  hundred 
thousand  people  were  in  the  procession,  twenty  thou- 
sand of  whom  were  soldiers.  One  hundred  bands  of 
music  played  during  the  march.  Nearly  a  millon 
people  witnessed  the  pageant.  Public  services  were 
held  in  Union  Square,  where  Hon.  George  Bancroft 
delivered  the  eulogy,  and  Dr.  J.  P.  Thompson  read  the 
President's  last  inaugural  address.  The  following  beau- 
tiful ode  by  the  poet  Bryant  was  read  by  Dr.  Osgood  :  — 

'   Oh,  slow  to  smite  and  swift  to  spare, 

Gentle,  and  merciful,  and  just ! 

Who  in  the  fear  of  God  didst  bear 

The  sword  of  power  —  a  nation's  trust. 

In  sorrow  by  thy  bier  we  stand, 

Amid  the  awe  that  hushes  all, 
And  speak  the  anguish  of  a  land 

That  shook  with  horror  at  thy  fall. 

Thy  task  is  done  —  the  bond  are  free  ; 

We  bear  thee  to  an  honored  grave? 
Whose  noblest  monument  shall  be 

The  broken  fetters  of  the  slave. 


tUNERAL   CEREMONIES.  455 


Pure  was  thy  life  \  its  bloody  close 

Hath  placed  thee  with  the  sons  of  light. 

Among  the  noble  host  of  those 

Who  perished  in  the  cause  of  right." 

Of  the  ceremonies  in  New  York,  Morris  said  :  "  The 
funeral  ceremonies  of  the  first  Napoleon,  in  the  streets 
of  Paris,  when  his  remains  were  transferred  from  St. 
Helena  to  the  Invalides  by  Louis  Philippe,  were  re- 
garded as  the  greatest  pageant  the  world  had  ever 
known,  but  the  pageant  in  New  York  far  exceeded  it." 

At  Albany  the  scene  was  no  less  imposing.  The 
city  was  shrouded  with  crape,  and  beautiful  sentiments 
appeared  here  and  there :  — 

"The  great  heart  of  the  nation  throbs  heavily  at  the  portals  of 
the  grave." 

"  All  joy  is  darkened  ;  the  mirth  of  the  land  is  gone." 

"  And  the  mourners  go  about  the  streets." 

44  And  the  victory  that  day  was  turned  into  mourning  unto  all 
the  people/' 

"  The  Martyr  to  Liberty.'' 

"  Though  dead,  he  yet  speaketh." 

*'  Washington,  the  Father  of  his  country  ;  Lincoln,  the  Saviout 
of  his  country." 

At  Dunkirk,  upon  a  tastefully  draped  platform  was 
A  a  group  of  thirty-six  young  ladies,  representing  the 
States  of  the  Union.  They  were  dressed  in  white, 
each  with  a  broad  black  scarf  resting  on  the  shoulder, 
and  holding  in  her  hand  a  national  flag." 

At  Cleveland  and  Columbus,  Ohio,  one  hundred 
and  eighty  persons  a  minute  saw  the  remains,  "  two 
rows  of  spectators  were  constantly  passing,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  coffin."  Flowers  wrought  into  every 
conceivable  device,  to  express  affection  and  respect  for 


456       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

the  dead,  literally  covered  the  coffin  and  platform  — 
harps,  wreaths,  bouquets,  crosses,  anchors,  and 
crowns. 

At  Piqua  ten  thousand  people  assembled  at  mid 
night,  with  uncovered  heads,  as  distinctly  seen  unde 
*he  blaze  of  torches  and  bonfires  as  under  the  light  ok 
mid-day,  and  thirty-six  ladies  in  white,  with  black 
sashes,  upon  a  draped  platform,  sang  a  plaintive  tune 
amidst  a  hushed  silence  that  was  oppressive.  As  they 
closed,  a  band  followed  with  a  touching  dirge.  The 
effect  of  these  ceremonies  at  midnight  baffles  descrip- 
tion. 

The  body  of  the  President  lay  in  state  at  Indianapolis 
over  the  Sabbath  of  April  30,  and  was  viewed  by  over 
one  hundred  thousand  people,  among  whom  were  five 
thousand  Sabbath-school  scholars  who  came  in  a  body 
with  flowers  to  scatter  upon  the  bier. 

At  Chicago,  the  preparations  for  funeral  ceremonies 
were  too  elaborate  to  be  described.  Thirty-six  young 
ladies  in  white,  with  black  sashes,  bareheaded  and  with 
a  black  velvet  wreath  over  the  brows,  a  star  in  front, 
their  arms  full  of  flowers  —  immortelles  and  garlands  — 
met  the  procession  before  it  reached  the  court-house, 
ind  laid  their  floral  tributes  upon  the  funeral  car.  As 
the  coffin  was  deposited  in  the  spacious  hall,  a  hundred 
singers,  overhead  and  invisible,  sang  a  funeral  dirge 
with  melting  effect.  Speaker  Colfax  delivered  an 
eloquent  eulogy.     Some  of  the  mottoes  displayed  were: 

"  The  altar  of  Freedom  has  borne  no  nobler  sacrifice." 
"  Illinois  clasps  to  her  bosom  her  slain,  but  glorified  son." 
**  He  was  sustained  by  our  prayers,  and  returned  embalmed  by 
our  tears." 


FUNERAL    CEREMONIES.  457 

»        i      m       . — - 

During  the  two  days  the  remains  reposed  in  Chicago, 
five  hundred  thousand  mourners  paid  their  tributes  of 
respect  to  their  lamented  fellow-citizen  and  neighbor. 

But  at  his  home,  in  Springfield,  among  his  former 
intimate  friends  and  townsmen,  the  most  touching 
scenes  occurred.  Many  sobbed  aloud  as  they  looked 
upon  his  familiar  face  in  deatn.  Old  men  and  women, 
young  men  and  maidens,  mourned  as  for  a  brother  and 
father.  From  the  country  around,  for  fifty  miles  and 
more,  people  came  wearing  badges  of  mourning  —  so 
many  thousands  that  the  town  could  scarcely  contain 
them,  And  when  the  body  was  conveyed  to  the  Oak 
Ridge  Cemetery,  where  Bishop  Simpson  delivered  a 
funeral  oration,  acres  of  ground  were  one  vast  "  sea  o. 
upturned  faces."  In  just  two  weeks  from  the  time  the 
funeral  cortege  left  Washington,  upon  its  march  of  six 
teen  hundred  miles,  the  remains  were  deposited  in  the 
grave,  over  which  a  grateful  country  has  reared  a  costly 
monument. 

Conspicuous  among  the  mottoes  displayed  in  the 
town,  were  these  two  : — 

"  Sooner  than  surrender  this  principle,  I  would  be  assassinated 
on  the  spot." 

"  Washington,  the  Father  of  his  country  ;  Lincoln,  the  Sav- 
iour." 

The  closing  paragraph  of  Bishop  Simpson's  eloquent 
eulogy  shall  close  our  story  of  him  who  worked  his  wa;y 
from  his  pioneer  home  to  the  White  House:  — 

"Chieftain!  farewell!  The  nation  mourns  thee.  Mothers 
shall  teach  thy  name  to  their  lisping  children.  The  youth  of  our 
land  shall  emulate  thy  virtues.  Statesmen  shall  study  thy  record 
and  learn  lessons  of  wisdom.     Mute  though  thy  lips  be,  yet  thej? 


458        PIONEER  HOME    TO  WHITE  HOUS&. 


still  speak,  rvushed  is  thy  voice,  but  its  echoes  of  liberty  are 
ringing  through  the  world,  and  the  sens  of  bondage  listen  with 
joy.  j-risoned  thou  art  in  death,  and  yet  thou  art  marching 
abroad,  and  chains  and  manacles  are  bursting  at  thy  touch.  Thou 
didst  fall  not  for  thyself.  The  assassin  had  no  hate  for  thee.  Our 
hearts  were  aimed  at,  oui  national  life  was  sought.  We  crown 
thee  as  our  martyr  —  and  humanity  enthrones  thee  as  her  triumph 
act  son     Hero,  martyr,  friend,  fareweW  I  * 


CHAPTER  XX3t 

^RATION  BY  HON.  GEORGE  BANCROFT. 

jjUR  grief  and  horror  at  the  crime  which  has 
clothed  the  continent  in  mourning,  find  no 
adequate  expression  in  words,  and  no  relief 
in  tears.  The  President  of  the  United 
States  of  America  has  fallen  by  the  hands  of  an 
assassin.  Neither  the  office  by  which  he  was  invested 
by  the  approved  choice  of  a  mighty  people,  nor  the 
most  simple-hearted  kindliness  of  nature,  could  save 
him  from  the  fiendish  passions  of  relentless  fanaticism. 
The  wailings  of  the  millions  attend  his  remains  as 
Aey  are  borne  in  solemn  procession  over  our  great 
rivers,  along  the  seaside,  beyond  the  mountains,  across 
the  prairie,  to  their  resting-place  in  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi.  His  funeral  knell  vibrates  through  the 
Forld,  and  the  friends  of  freedom  of  every  tongue  and 
•:■?>.  every  clime  are  his  mourners. 

Too  few  days  have  passed  away  since  Abraham  Lin- 
coln stood  in  the  flush  of  vigorous  manhood,  to  permit 
any  attempt  at  an  analysis  of  his  character,  or  an  ex- 
position of  his  career.  We  find  it  hard  to  believe  that 
his  large  eyes,  which  in  their  softness  and  beauty 
expressed  nothing  but  benevolence  and  gentleness,  are 


460       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

closed  in  death ;  we  almost  look  ior  the  pleasant  smile 
that  brought  out  more  vividly  the  earnest  cast  of  his 
features,  which  were  serious  even  to  sadness.  A  few 
years  ago  he  was  a  village  attorney,  engaged  in  the 
support  of  a  rising  family,  unknown  to  fame,  scarcely 
named  beyond  his  neighborhood  ;  his  administration 
made  him  the  most  conspicuous  man  in  his  country, 
and  drew  on  him  first  the  astonished  gaze,  and  then 
the  respect  and  admiration  of  the  world. 

Those  who  come  after  us  will  decide  how  much  of 
the  wonderful  results  of  his  public  career  is  due  to  his 
own  good  common  sense,  his  shrewd  sagacity,  readiness 
of  wit,  quick  interpretation  of  the  public  mind,  his  rare 
combination  of  fixedness  and  pliancy,  his  steady  ten 
dency  of  purpose  ;  how  much  to  the  American  people; 
who,  as  he  walked  with  them  side  by  side,  inspired  him 
with  their  own  wisdom  and  energy ;  and  how  much  to 
the  overruling  laws  of  the  moral  world,  by  which  the 
selfishness  of  evil  is  made  to  defeat  itself.  But  after 
every  allowance,  it  will  remain  that  members  of  the 
government  which  preceded  his  administration  opened 
the  gates  to  treason,  and  he  closed  them ;  that  when 
he  went  to  Washington  the  ground  on  which  he  trod 
shook  under  his  feet,  and  he  left  the  republic  on  a 
Solid  foundation ;  that  traitors  had  seized  public  forts 
and  arsenals,  and  he  recovered  them  for  the  United 
States,  to  whom  they  belonged ;  that  the  capita^ 
which  he  found  the  abode  of  slaves,  is  now  the  home 
only  of  the  free ;  that  the  boundless  public  domain 
which  was  grasped  at,  and,  in  a  great  measure,  held  for 
the  diffusion  of  slavery,  is  now  irrevocably  devoted  to 
freedom ;  that  men  then  talked  a  jargon  of  a  balance 


ORATION  BY  GEORGE  BANCROFT.         46I 

of  power  in  a  republic  between  slave  States  and  free 
States,  and  now  the  foolish  words  are  blown  away  for 
ever  by  the  breath  of  Maryland,  Missouri,  and  Ten- 
nessee ;  that  a  terrible  cloud  of  political  heresy  rose 
from  the  abyss,  threatening  to  hide  the  light  of  the 
sun,  and  under  its  darkness  a  rebellion  was  growing 
into  indefinable  proportions ;  now  the  atmosphere  is 
purer  than  ever  before,  and  the  insurrection  is  vanish- 
ing away ;  the  country  is  cast  into  another  mould,  and 
the  gigantic  system  of  wrong,  which  had  been  the 
work  of  more  than  two  centuries,  is  dashed  down,  we 
hope  forever.  And  as  to  himself,  personally  :  he  was 
then  scoffed  at  by  the  proud  as  unfit  for  his  statijn, 
and  now,  against  usage  of  later  years,  and  in  spite  of 
numerous  competitors,  he  was  the  unbiassed  and  the 
undoubted  choice  of  the  American  people  for  a  second 
term  of  service.  Through  all  the  mad  business  of 
treason  he  retained  the  sweetness  of  a  most  placable 
disposition  ;  and  the  slaughter  of  myriads  of  the  best 
on  the  battle-field,  and  the  more  terrible  destruction  of 
our  men  in  captivity,  by  the  slow  torture  of  exposure 
and  starvation,  had  never  been  able  to  provoke  him 
into  harboring  one  vengeful  feeling,  or  one  purpose  of 
cruelty. 

How  shall  the  nation  most  completely  show  its  sorrow 
at  Mr.  Lincoln's  death  ?  How  shall  it  best  honor 
his  memory  ?  There  can  be  but  one  answer.  He  was 
struck  down  when  he  was  highest  in  its  service,  and, 
in  strict  conformity  with  duty,  was  engaged  in  carry, 
ing  out  principles  affecting  its  life,  its  good  name,  and 
its  relations  to  the  cause  of  freedom  and  the  progress 
oi  mankind.     Grief  must  take  the  character  of  action. 


4©2       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


and  breathe  itself  forth  in  the  assertion  of  the  policy 
to  which  he  fell  a  victim.  The  standard  which  he  held 
in  his  hand  must  be  uplifted  again  higher  and  more 
firmly  than  before,  and  must  be  carried  on  to  triumph. 

Above  everything  else,  his  proclamation  of  the  first 
lay  of  January,  1863,  declaring,  throughout  the  parts 
of  the  country  in  rebellion,  the  freedom  of  all  persons 
who  had  been  held  as  slaves,  must  be  affirmed  and 
maintained. 

Events,  as  they  rolled  onward,  have  removed  every 
doubt  01  the  legality  and  binding  force  of  that  procla- 
mation. The  country  and  the  rebel  government  have 
each  laid  claim  to  the  public  service  of  the  slave,  &  d 
yet  but  one  of  the  two  can  have  a  rightful  claim  to 
such  service.  That  rightful  claim  belongs  to  the 
United  States,  because  every  one  born  on  their  soil, 
with  the  few  exceptions  of  the  children  of  travellers 
and  transient  residents,  owes  them  a  primary  al- 
legiance. Every  one  so  born  has  been  counted  among 
those  represented  in  Congress  ;  every  slave  has  ever 
been  represented  in  Congress  ;  imperfectly  and  wrong- 
fully, it  may  be,  —  but  still  has  been  counted  and 
represented.  The  slave  born  on  our  soil  always  owed 
allegiance  to  the  general  government.  It  may  in  time 
past  have  been  a  qualified  allegiance,  manifested 
through  his  master,  as  the  allegiance  of  a  ward 
through  its  guardian,  or  an  infant  through  its  parent. 
But  when  the  master  became  false  to  his  allegiance, 
the  slave  stood  face  to  face  with  his  country  ;  and 
his  allegiance,  which  may  before  have  been  a  qualified 
one,  became  direct  and  immediate.  His  chains  fell 
off,  and  he  rose  at  once  in  the  presence  of  the  natioa 


ORATION  BY  GEORGE  BANCROFT.         4^3 


bound,  like  the  rest  of  us,  to  its  defence.  Mr.  Lin* 
coin's  proclamation  did  not  take  notice  of  the  already 
existing  right  of  the  bondman  to  freedom.  The 
treason  of  the  master  made  it  a  public  crime  for  the 
slave  to  continue  his  obedience ;  the  treason  of  a 
State  set  free  the  collective  bondmen  of  that  Sta.cc. 

This  doctrine  is  supported  by  the  analogy  of  precc 
dents.  In  the  times  of  feudalism,  the  treason  of  the 
lord  of  the  manor  deprived  him  of  his  serfs;  the 
spurious  feudalism  that  existed  among  us  differs  in 
many  respects  from  the  feudalism  of  the  middle  ages, 
but  so  far  the  precedent  runs  parallel  with  the  present 
case ;  for  treason  the  master  then,  for  treason  the 
master  now,  loses  his  slaves. 

In  the  middle  ages,  the  sovereign  appointed  another 
lord  over  the  mrts  and  the  land  which  they  cultivated  ; 
in  our  day,  tbf;  sovereign  makes  them  masters  of  their 
own  persons,  lords  over  themselves. 

It  has  bee^  said  that  we  are  at  war,  and  that  eman 
tipation  is  not  a  belligerent  right.  The  objection 
iisappears  before  analysis.  In  a  war  between  inde- 
pendent powers,  the  invading  foreigner  invites  to  his 
standard  aR  who  will  give  him  aid,  whether  bond  or 
free,  and  lie  rewards  them  according  to  his  ability  and 
his  pleasure,  with  gifts  or  freedom :  but  when  at  a 
peace  h«  withdraws  from  an  invaded  country,  he  must 
take  his  aiders  and  comforters  with  him  :  or,  if  he 
leaves  Lhem  behind,  where  he  has  no  court  to  enforce 
his  decrees,  he  can  give  them  no  security,  unless  it  be 
by  the  stipulations  of  a  treaty.  In  a  civil  war,  it  is 
altogether  different.  There,  when  rebellion  is  crushed, 
tbfj  old  government  is  restored,  and  its  courts  resume 


464       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 

their  jurisdiction  So  it  is  with  us;  the  United  States 
have  courts  of  their  own,  that  must  punish  the  guilt 
of  treason,  and  vindicate  the  freedom  of  persons  whom 
the  fact  of  rebellion  has  set  free. 

Nor  may  it  be  said,  that  because  slavery  existed  iiv 
most  of  the  States  when  the  Union  was  formed,  it 
cannot  rightfully  be  interfered  with  now.  A  change 
has  taken  place,  such  as  Madison  foresaw,  and  for 
which  he  pointed  out  the  remedy.  The  constitutions 
of  States  had  been  transformed  before  the  plotters  of 
treason  carried  them  away  into  rebellion.  When  the 
Federal  Constitution  was  framed,  general  emancipation 
was  thought  to  be  near  ;  and  everywhere  the  respective 
legislatures  had  authority,  in  the  exercise  of  their  ordi- 
nary functions,  to  do  away  with  slavery.  Since  that  time 
the  attempt  has  been  made,  in  what  are  called  slave 
States,  to  render  the  condition  of  slavery  perpetual ; 
and  events  have  proved,  with  the  clearness  of  demon- 
stration, that  a  constitution  which  seeks  to  continue  a 
caste  of  hereditary  bondsmen  through  endless  gener- 
ations is  inconsistent  with  the  existence  of  republican 
institutions. 

So,  then,  the  new  President  and  the  people  of  the 
United  States  must  insist  that  the  proclamation  of 
freedom  shall  stand  as  a  reality.  And,  moreover,  the 
people  must  never  cease  to  insist  that  the  Constitution 
shall  be  so  amended  as  to  utterly  prohibit  slavery  on 
any  part  of  our  soil  for  evermore. 

Alas !  that  a  State  in  our  vicinity  should  withhold 
its  assent  to  this  last  beneficent  measure :  its  refusal 
was  an  encouragement  to  our  enemies  equal  to  the 
gain  of  a  Ditched  battle ;  and  delays  the  only  hopeful 


OH  ATI  ON  BY  GEORGE  BANCROFT.         465 


method  of  pacification.  The  removal  of  the  cause  of 
the  rebellion  is  not  only  demanded  by  justice  ;  it  is 
£he  policy  of  mercy,  making  room  for  a  wider  clem- 
ency ;  it  is  the  part  of  order  against  a  chaos  of  con* 
troversy  ;  its  success  brings  with  it  true  reconcilement, 
a  lasting  peace,  a  continuous  growth  of  confidence 
through  an  assimilation  of  the  social  condition. 

Here  is  the  fitting  expression  of  the  mourning  of 
to-day. 

And  let  no  lover  of  his  country  say  that  this  warning 
is  uncalled  for.  The  cry  is  delusive  that  slavery  is 
dead.  Even  now  it  is  nerving  itself  for  a  fresh  strug- 
gle for  continuance.  The  last  winds  from  the  South 
waft  to  us  the  sad  intelligence  that  a  man  who  had 
surrounded  himself  with  the  glory  of  the  most  brilliant 
and  most  varied  achievements,  who  but  a  week  ago 
was  counted  with  affectionate  pride  among  the  great- 
est benefactors  of  his  country  and  the  ablest  generals 
of  his  time,  has  initiated  the  exercise  of  more  than  the 
whole  power  of  the  Executive,  and,  under  the  name  of 
peace,  has,  perhaps  unconsciously,  revived  slavery,  and 
given  the  hope  of  security  and  political  power  to 
traitors,  from  the  Chesapeake  to  the  Rio  Grande. 
Why  could  he  not  remember  the  dying  advice  of 
Washington,  never  to  draw  the  sword  but  for  self 
defence  or  the  rights  of  his  country,  and,  when  drawn, 
never  to  sheathe  it  till  its  work  should  be  accomplished  1 
And  yet,  irom  this  ill-considered  act,  which  the  people 
with  one  united  voice  condemn,  no  great  evil  will 
follow  save  the  shadow  on  his  own  fame  ;  and  that, 
also,  we  hope  will  pass  away.  The  individual,  even  in 
the  greatness   of  military  glory,  sinks  into   insignifi 


4&>       PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HCUSE 

cance  before  the  resistless  movements  of  ideas  in  the 
history  of  man.  No  one  can  turn  back  or  stay  tne 
march  of  Providence. 

No  sentiment  of  despair  may  mix  with  our  sorrow. 
We  owe  it  to  the  memory  of  the  dead,  we  owe  to  the 
:ause  of  popular  liberty  throughout  the  world,  that  the 
sudden  crime  which  has  taken  the  life  of  the  President 
of  the  United  States  shall  not  produce  the  least  inv 
pediment  in  the  smooth  course  of  public  affairs.  This 
great  city,  in  the  midst  of  unexampled  emblems  oi 
deeply-seated  grief,  has  sustained  itself  with  com- 
posure and  magnanimity.  It  has  nobly  done  its  part 
in  guarding  against  the  derangement  of  business  or 
the  slightest  shock  to  public  credit.  The  enemies  of 
the  republic  put  it  to  the  severest  trial ;  but  the  voice 
of  faction  has  not  been  heard  ;  doubt  and  despondencj 
lave  been  unknown.  In  serene  majesty,  the  country 
iises  in  the  beauty,  and  strength,  and  hope  of  youth, 
md  proves  to  the  world  the  quiet  energy  and  the 
durability  of  institutions  growing  out  of  the  reason 
and  affections  of  the  people. 

Heaven  has  willed  it  that  the  United  States  shall 
live.  Tfr-  nations  of  the  earth  cannot  spare  themc 
All  the  worn-out  aristocracies  of  Europe  saw  in  the 
Bpurious  feudalism  of  slaveholding  their  strongest 
outpost,  and  banded  themselves  together  with  the 
deadly  enemies  of  our  national  life.  If  the  Old  World 
will  discuss  the  respective  advantages  of  oligarch  or 
equality ;  of  the  union  of  church  and  state,  or  the 
rightful  freedom  of  religion  ;  of  land  accessible  to  tne 
many,  or  of  land  monopolized  by  an  ever-decreasing 
number  of  the  few,  —  the  United  States  must  live  to 


ORATION  BY  GEORGE  BANCROFT.         46; 


control  the  decision  by  their  quiet  and  unobtrusive 
example.  It  has  often  and  truly  been  observed,  that 
the  trust  and  affection  of  the  masses  gather  naturally 
round  an  individual ;  if  the  inquiry  is  made,  whether 
the  man  so  trusted  and  beloved  shall  elicit  from  the 
reason  of  the  people  enduring  institutions  of  their 
own,  or  shall  sequester  political  power  for  a  superin 
tending  dynasty,  the  United  States  must  live  to  solve 
the  problem.  If  a  question  is  raised  on  the  respective 
merits  of  Timoleon  or  Julius  Caesar,  or  of  Washington 
or  Napoleon,  the  United  States  must  be  there  to 
call  to  mind  that  there  were  twelve  Caesars,  most  of 
them  the  opprobrium  of  the  human  race,  and  to  con- 
trast with  them  the  line  of  American  Presidents. 

The  duty  of  the  hour  is  incomplete,  our  mourning 
:s  insincere,  if,  while  we  express  unwavering  trust  in 
the  great  principles  that  underlie  our  government,  we 
do  not  also  give  our  support  to  the  man  to  whom  the 
people  have  entrusted  its  administration. 

Andrew  Johnson  is  now,  by  the  Constitution,  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  he  stands  before 
the  world  as  the  most  conspicuous  representative  of 
the  industrial  classes.  Left  an  orphan  at  four  years 
old,  poverty  and  toil  were  his  steps  to  honor.  His 
youth  was  not  passed  in  the  halls  of  colleges ;  never- 
theless, he  has  received  a  thorough  political  education 
In  statesmanship,  in  the  school  of  the  people,  and  by 
long  experience  of  public  life.  A  village  functionary: 
member  successively  of  each  branch  of  the  Tennessee 
Legislature,  hearing  with  a  thrill  of  joy  the  words. 
*'The  Union,  it  must  be  preserved ;"  a  representative 
in  Congress  for  successive  years;    governor  of  ths 


468        PIONEER  HOME   TO  WHITE  HOUSE. 


great  State  of  Tennessee,  approved  as  its  governor  by 
re-election  ;  he  was  at  the  opening  of  the  rebellion 
a  senator  from  that  State  in  Congress.  Then  at  the 
Capitol,  when  senators,  unrebuked  by  the  governmentf 
sent  word  by  telegram  to  seize  forts  and  arsenals,  he 
alone  of  that  southern  region  told  them  what  the 
government  did  not  dare  to  tell  them,  that  they  were 
traitors,  and  deserved  the  punishment  of  treason 
Undismayed  by  a  perpetual  purpose  of  public  enemies 
to  take  his  life,  bearing  up  against  the  still  greater 
trial  of  the  persecution  of  his  wife  and  children,  in 
due  time  he  went  back  to  his  State,  determined  to 
restore  it  to  the  Union,  or  die  with  the  American  flag 
for  his  winding-sheet  And  now,  at  the  call  of  the 
United  States,  he  has  returned  to  Washington  as  a 
conqueror,  with  Tennessee  as  a  free  State  for  his 
trophy.  It  remains  for  him  to  consummate  the  vindi- 
cation of  the  Union. 

To  that  Union  Abraham  Lincoln  has  fallen  a  mar- 
tyr. His  death,  which  was  meant  to  sever  it  beyond 
repair,  binds  it  more  closely  and  more  firmly  than  ever. 
The  blow  aimed  at  him  was  aimed  not  at  the  native  of 
Kentucky,  not  at  the  citizen  of  Illinois,  but  at  the 
man,  who,  as  President  in  the  executive  branch  of  the 
government,  stood  as  the  representative  of  every  man 
n  the  United  States  The  object  of  the  crime  was 
the  life  of  the  whole  people ;  and  it  wounds  the 
affections  of  the  whole  people.  From  Maine  to  the 
southwest  boundary  of  the  Pacific,  it  makes  us  one 
The  country  may  have  needed  an  imperishable  grief  to 
touch  its  inmost  feeling.  The  grave  that  receives  the 
remains  of  Lincoln,  receives  the  costly  sacrifice  to  the 


ORATION  BY  GEORGE  BANCROFT.         469 

Unicri ;  the  monument  which  will  rise  over  his  body 
will  bear  witness  to  the  Union  ;  his  enduring  memory 
will  assist  during  countless  ages  to  bind  the  States 
together,  and  to  incite  to  the  love  of  cur  one  un 
divided,  indivisible  country.  Peace  to  the  ashes  of 
our  departed  friend,  the  friend  of  his  country  and  ol 
his  race.  He  was  happy  in  his  life,  for  he  was  the 
restorer  of  the  republic  :  he  was  happy  in  his  death, 
for  his  martyrdom  will  plead  forever  for  the  Union  d 
the  States  and  the  freedom  of  man. 


